Winter Meltdown?
by Capital WHY
Summary: Twelve young trainers head to Snowpoint for a two-month long festival that occurs once every decade. Of course, between Christmas, New Year's, and Valentine's Day, SOMETHING is bound to blossom, right? Unfortunately for this group, it might just be chaos.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N I don't own pokemon, but if I did . . . }:3**

This is not, I repeat NOT a typical Contest-Ikari-Poke shipping story. Why? Because . . . I'M GONNA CHANGE EVERYTHING! }:D Pokeshippers, Ikarishippers, Contestshippers, Pearlshippers, and Advanceshippers BEWARE (and so can everybody else, by the way).

* * *

"Hey Misty," Ash's hand trembled as he held the cell phone to his ear. He was never nervous. Ever. So why now? "Misty, uh, is it hot in here, or is it just me?"

"What?" Misty's reaction was quite loud.

Ash thought for a moment. "Oh! Uh, that's not what I meant! I mean, um, the temperture! You know . . . like, uh, what is it again? Fahrenus? Celsinheit? No?"

"Ash, first of all, I'm not there. How am I supposed to know if it's hot there?" Ash chuckled a bit in embarrassment as his face became red. "Secondly, aren't you in Snowpoint?" Ash looked around. Oh yeah! He was in Snowpoint. Outside. How had he forgotten _that?_ "Third, it's _Celsius _and _Fahrenheit._" Okay, he hadn't known that one. "And lastly, what is wrong with you?"

'_Hm, let me get back to you on that one,' _the boy thought in desperation. What _was _wrong with him? He was a pokemon master, right? Super-cool, never-fail Ash! So what was wrong? "Ash? Are you there?"

"Uh, I dunno . . . I mean yes!"

He heard Misty sigh over the phone. "Why did you call me, Ash?"

"I forget!" he blurted.

"Oh, well in that case, I've gotta go. I'm, um . . . kinda busy. Ttyl, Ash, 'kay?"

"Good luck, and, um . . . break a leg!" Today was not Ash's day.

"Um, okay?" Then, she hung up.

"What on Earth was that?" Pikachu, huddling at his feet, had no response but an exasperated look that clearly meant 'Let's go inside now.' "Pikachu, why did I freak out?" He sighed and messed with his hat. "Okay, why did I act so weird around her . . . ?"

"Perhaps you're in love, Romeo!" a familiar voice giggled from behind him. Ash turned quickly.

"Dawn? What are you doing here? And did you listen to my whole conversation?"

Dawn winked mischievously. "Yup, every word! And I'm here for the celebration. You know, the winter one? Snowpoint has one every ten years, and it lasts from the fifteenth of December to the fifteenth of February. Snowpoint's gonna be packed, and I wanted to get here early so I could get a good hotel room. I guess you're _not _here for the celebration?"

"No, I'm not." Wait, why was he here again? Oh yeah . . . "I'm here because I finally have a chance to wipe the floor with Paul in front of everybody! I challenged him to a battle, and he said he'd only on battle with me on the last day of that celebration-thingy. I came here to get warmed up." Snow began falling faster. "Er, maybe not exactly warmed up . . ."

"I know what you mean, Ash," Dawn laughed. "So anyways, you were talking to Misty on the phone just now, right?"

Ash flushed again, deeper this time. "Uh, yeah, I was."

Dawn giggled. "So . . . what did you call her for?"

Ash pondered for a moment. "I dunno."

The girl had an odd grin on her face, of which Ash had no clue towards the meaning of. "So you called her just to hear the sound of her voice?"

"Yeah, I guess," Ash responded. "W-wait! No, no! I didn't! I mean . . . ugh!" The boy shook his head. Girls were so weird sometimes.

Her reply was a fit of laughter. "What is so funny?" Dawn rolled her eyes. Boys were so clueless sometimes.

"Um, isn't it obvious? You are head over heels in L-O-V-E!"

"What? What gave you that idea?"

"Psh, only everything! Think about it! You call her for no reason, you get all nervous on the phone, you blurt out things that you wouldn't normally say, and you find yourself too hot in _Snowpoint_."

"Hm . . . do those things really mean I'm in love?"

Dawn sighed. Did she need to write it out for him? "What did I just say? Y. E. S. THEY. DO. MEAN. YOU. ARE. IN. LOVE."

"Interesting . . ." He got lost in thought.

"Yeah, okay, well, I'm gonna go get some hot chocolate. You can just, um, stay here and think about it if you want," Dawn stopped, thought, then added, "OR you could come with me?" She sounded a bit, well, hopeful.

Ash blinked. "Hot chocolate? Okay!" He had finally slipped back into normal Ashness, and pikachu would finally get his wish of going somewhere warmer.

* * *

**A/N** Kay, so some of you might think, "Uh, Finesseful? That was just Pokeshipping fluff with a itty-bitty hint of Pearlshipping. What gives?" But trust me. This is only the beginning . . . and I have something very frightening for any normal shippers to deal with in store. ^_~

One more thing: if you want me to keep writing/updating my stories, it helps if you review. Then, I know peoples are reading. ALSO if you want a quick update, I need a review that says 'YOU'D BETTER UPDATE OR I'M GONNA THROW SOMETHING AT YOU' or something like that. Then, I'll know that I'd better keep writing, and I may not be such a lazy procrastinator. ^^ Okay, done rambling now. Remember, Rest&Relax, and Read&Review! ;)


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N I don't own Pokemon. Be thankful. ;)**

* * *

"_Drew? _What on Earth are you doing here?" The boy turned around and smiled smugly. It was _her._

"May. Fancy seeing you here," he said. The girl's eyes narrowed.

"Why are you here?" she mumbled, slightly pouting. _'There goes my perfect vacation,' _she thought.

He snickered. "Why would I _not _be here, May? The winter celebration is only once every ten years. _Everyone _is going to be here."

The girl paused in thought. "Well Max isn't here. Or Brock. Or-"

Drew sighed in annoyance. "Just forget it, okay?"

The two were at Snowpoint's docks, and though May had dressed for the cold, she was still far too chilled to be comfortable. She was visibly shivering.

"You're cold," stated Drew.

With an amused smile, May replied, "Of course I am!"

The boy's eyes took on a look that May was not familiar with. "Do you want some hot chocolate?"

May was taken by surprise with that one. "What? I-I mean, uh, yeah! Yeah, I'd like some hot chocolate."

"All right then, c'mon." Drew began walking off the docks.

"Er, Drew? How do you know it's that way?"

He smiled, genuinely, further shocking May. "I read the brochure on the way here. Now are you coming?"

She nodded and ran to catch up. _'What's up with him?' _she wondered.

* * *

"So then, after she apologized, I- May?" Dawn practically shouted, snapping Ash out of his boredom-induced coma.

"Dawn!" The two girls embraced.

"You must be here for the celebration!"

"Yup! You too, I guess. Oh, hi Ash."

"May? When did you get here?"

The girl cocked an eyebrow. "Um, just now." There was an uncomfortable pause. "Are you here for the celebration too, Ash?" May asked.

"Naw, I'm here to battle Paul."

"Oh, are you battling him today?"

Ash blinked. "No, I'm battling him on the last day of the celebration."

May was puzzled. "Then why are you here so early?"

"To get my pokemon used to the cold, so it won't be a problem in battle!"

"Oh . . . Hey Dawn, where are you- Dawn?" May saw the girl gazing off into the distance. Following her gaze, May found, in astonishment and amusement, that she was staring at _Drew_! The boy was ordering two hot chocolates, one for May, and one for himself. _'Does Dawn like Drew?' _May questioned. Suddenly, she felt a pang of . . . something. May wasn't sure what it was, but she didn't like it.

_'Why should I be upset if Dawn likes Drew? I mean, it's not like he likes her back- I mean, it's not like I care!' _Now, she was scaring herself. "That's Drew," May said to Dawn.

"Drew . . ." she repeated, as if trying out the word for the first time. "Hm . . ."

"So Dawn, where are you staying-"

"Excuse me for a second," murmured Dawn as she walked towards the counter of the little coffee shop.

'_You can handle this May. You can handle this. Drew is annoying, remember? Drew insults you, remember?' _She tried to remind herself of the mean things he'd done, but she could only think of the roses.

"So May, what are you-"

"Hold that thought, Ash!" May headed to the counter as well.

Ash shrugged. _'Must be a girl thing I guess.' _

* * *

"Finally. Snowpoint." The girl was relieved. It wasn't that she didn't like being on the ocean. Actually, the opposite held true; she adored it. But what she didn't like was the blistering cold wind. Or the crowds of pushy people, the amount of which was much too large for the ship.

As she prepared herself to leave the boat, she ran into someone.

"Watch it," growled the stranger.

"Sheesh! No need to be such a jerk!" Misty snapped back. She could've been talking to an Elite Four member for all she cared. Nobody spoke to her that way and left unscathed. "You should've watched where _you _were going, you half-wit!"

The boy whom she'd collided with simply stared at her in wonder. No one had ever spoken to him that way, or at least, no one that he'd noticed. Most people were either too intimidated, too polite, or unable to come up with such a comeback.

"Sorry then," he muttered.

Misty felt a tiny pang of guilt. She could've been a _bit _more cordial. "I'm Misty." She stuck her hand out to introduce herself.

The boy stared at her hand for a moment. He wasn't sure why he felt the need to return the gesture, but he did anyways. With a blank tone, he replied,

"I'm Paul."

* * *

**A/N **If you appreciated this chapter, you can thank Sakura Uchiha Hyuuga no Sabaku for making me update. XD

So? You like? Find it interesting? Then please tell me! ^^ I appreciate ALL reviews!

Now, to reply to the reviews:

**T**o Sakura (Can I call you that? Cuz your pen name's really long XD): I love the normal pairings too! I just, you know, thought there were WAY too many stories with them. This fic, while it will have crack-pairs, isn't really a crack fic. Every one of these ships is possible (kinda)!

**T**o Ability King KK: Actually, I'm keeping the ships within the following characters: Ash, Misty, Drew, May, Paul, Dawn, and two others . . . but don't worry! They're the right ages. ;) But just for future reference, if I _do _put Cynthia or Steven in one of my fics as a ship with whoever, I usually bump their ages down.

Thanks to you two for the reviews, and thanks for the add to favorites and add to alerts by some peoples. ^^

Have a nice day! 'Til next time,

Finessefully,

X


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N I don't own pokemon. I didn't get it from Santa this year.**

* * *

"So, Paul, are you here for the Snowpoint Winter Celebration?" Misty was still a bit embarrassed that she had been so harsh. He'd only said six words since she'd, well, known him, and she knew that her temper had the tendency to get the better of her.

He blinked. "What?" This girl was trying to start a conversation with him? He didn't quite understand, but ignored his confusion and added, "No."

Misty smiled a bit. "Which means you must be here for the bitter cold?"

"No, I-" He paused. It was a joke. Before he could stop himself, he grinned a bit. He soon realized what he was doing, though, and steeled himself once more. _'What's going on? If anyone else had said that, I would've told them to go annoy someone else . . .'_

The girl saw that she had gotten a response from him, however small, and it felt nice. She could see that he was not one given to freely expressing his emotions, and was slightly surprised that she'd received anything for her attempt at conversation at all. "Why don't you tell me why you're really here?" Misty suggested. "After all, it doesn't look like we'll be getting off the boat in a while." She gestured towards the four other boats, loaded with people also, who had gotten to the docks first.

The docks were crawling with people, as was Snowpoint itself. Her subconscious sighed when considering the difficulty in getting a hotel room.

"I'm here for a battle."

His short answers were getting a bit annoying. She was a girl. She needed _details!_ "Uh-huh, a battle. With who?"

Paul's eyes narrowed. "Just . . . some guy."

Misty averted her gaze. "Okay then, and why are you coming out _here _to battle him?"

"I don't know." It was a half-truth, his answer. He knew a long time ago. Ten years ago, he knew. He had to come to the celebration. It had been simmering up inside of him, and had finally revealed itself, albeit to an older Paul. A Paul who wouldn't want to come to a celebration. A Paul that _had _to go to a celebration. The celebration. _This _celebration.

"Interesting . . . So, when do you battle him?"

"The last day of the celebration."

Misty's expression changed from slight annoyance to confusion. "Then why are you coming so early?"

"I don't know." This time, though, he remembered. He remembered a day when his brother went away for a while. A _long _while. Then, he had come back. _"You would've loved it Paul! Too bad you're too little to go. Maybe next time." _Next time. Those words were the ones his inner child had clung to. Of course, Paul wasn't even aware he had an inner child. But he felt like he had missed something. Like somehow, his life might've gone better if he'd gone to the celebration. Blame it on a child's imagination, or an unfulfilled dream, despite the fact that he knew some sort of celebration went against all he'd built himself up to be, he had to come.

Misty knew that Paul was holding back on purpose this time, but she didn't mind. She'd just met him, after all.

"So you're going to stay for the celebration?"

"Yes."

"Can I see your battle?" The question threw Paul completely off-guard. He didn't know what to say. He couldn't think of a reason why she couldn't . . . and after all, the more people who saw Ash lose, the better.

"Whatever." It was the nicest response he could come up with on short notice.

Misty grinned. "Thanks! I'm sure I'll enjoy watching it."

She stared out into the sea, and let her thoughts take control. But if she hadn't, she might've noticed a certain young man who was watching her, observing her every frost-tinted breath. He'd never met anyone like this before. She fascinated him. She puzzled him. But most of all, he felt . . . better, standing here with this girl. If Paul had caught himself thinking these things, he would've been angry with himself. But his subconscious was spinning a web, based on this girl whom he'd just met. This _Misty._

* * *

"And that's your 150 poké in change. Thank you for coming to Snowpoint Cafe." Drew gathered the money in his gloved hand and struggled to carry two drinks with the other. He came quite close to spilling it all over, but someone relieved him of the cups before he managed to make a fool of himself. And that was something that Drew was quite grateful for.

"Here you go," came a gentle voice. _'Well, that isn't May!' _thought Drew in surprise. Looking up from the floor, which he'd come awfully close to meeting, he found that he was gazing into a pair of crystal-clear blue eyes. May ran up just as Drew's fingers (gloved, of course) brushed against Dawn's, getting the drinks back.

Both girls' eyes instantly went to the contact that had just happened, but Drew's eyes remained fixated on Dawn's.

Dawn allowed herself to look shyly back at him, a slight blush enveloping her face. "Dawn, this is Drew. Drew, Dawn." May had seen the instant attraction between the two, and she certainly didn't like it, but she would still give introductions like a polite, civilized person.

"Hi . . ." Dawn whispered. Her heart was racing, as was her mind. She couldn't remember a time when she'd been this quiet, a time when she had nothing to say. All she could think about was Drew and his green eyes.

"So you're Dawn. May spoke of you a lot," Drew said smiling. May instantly burned up inside. She only gotten her first (that she could remember) real, genuine smile from Drew today after knowing him for a long time, and Dawn, who he just met, was getting kindness!

"Y-you did?" Dawn stuttered, turning her attention to May.

'_This is not fair,' _May growled to herself. But she buried her burning jealousy and grinned brightly.

"Of course I have! We are great friends, right?" Dawn nodded enthusiastically.

"Hey, are you guys coming?" It was Ash. The three looked over. There were now four chairs at the table where only two had been, and Ash looked a bit bored over there by himself. Sure, he had Pikachu, but he was busy fawning over a stray ketchup bottle he'd just found. Ash and the others were amazed at the fact that there was a ketchup bottle in a coffee shop, but it was there, and soon, the thought was nonexistent in their minds.

Sitting at the table, Drew found himself between Dawn and May. No one spoke for a few moments, and everyone but Ash felt the tension. Right when Drew was about to speak, there was a jingling noise, signifying that someone had entered the little coffee shop. Normally, the four trainers probably wouldn't have looked up, especially considering the tension the most of them felt. But when the person who entered the shop exclaimed, "Ash, is that you?" The four of them looked up.

Dawn jumped out of her chair in excitement. "I can't believe it!"

Ash grinned and stood as well. "Yeah, it's been a while."

* * *

**A/N ***Grins* And that's all I've got for you! ;) Remember, if you review telling me to update, I'll write more, because that reminds me that I actually have readers who wanna know how this story's gonna go. XD

**R**eview Replies:

**T**o Ability King KK: First of all, I'm sorry, but I'm keepin' it strictly anime, and I just don't know enough about Anabel to write her into the story. I missed that episode. XD Maybe someday, though. I wanna write a lot more of these kind of stories. I'm kinda surprised, but I think I'm having just as much fun writing them as (I hope) everybody's reading them! ^^

**T**o Cleggy2100: You know, when you give me ideas like that, my mind can't help but jump on it. In fact, your one review gave me two ideas! Bonus! But yeah, I got dibs on that story! ;) Maybe I should finish up at least one of the five stories I'm working on first, though. Otherwise, I might never finish them. XD

**T**o Yugi937: LOL Don't worry, like I said, two more characters still haven't been introduced yet. Advancedshipping is still too popular a pair to be thrown into this fic, but there may be hints of it (No promises though. Sorry May but the jealousy parts are fun to write XD). Don't detest me, please! :3

So, once more. Remember. Please review and you'll make my day! ;)

Finessefully,

X


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N I do not own pokemon. Thank you for not getting me confused with the owner of said . . . er, thing.**

* * *

PREVIOUSLY ON WINTER MELTDOWN?:

_But when the person who entered the shop exclaimed, "Ash, is that you?" the four of them looked up._

_Dawn jumped out of her chair in excitement. "I can't believe it!"_

_Ash grinned and stood as well. "Yeah, it's been a while."_

* * *

The boy returned the smile. "And if it isn't Dawn too. I guess you guys are all here for the celebration, huh?" As he spoke, he dragged a chair over between Dawn and Ash.

Dawn was staring adoringly at him, completely disregarding Drew. May felt her spirits boost already at the coming of this stranger. Ash realized that Drew and May were unaware of the identity of the young man. "Oh, sorry guys. Drew, May, this is my old rival, Gary Oak. Gary, this is Drew, and this is May."

Gary smiled at the two of them. "Hello, it's nice meet you guys!"

Drew studied him. "Yeah, sure," he said, sounding a bit on edge. May didn't understand what was wrong with him today. He just seemed so distant! She would've rather had him mocking her than completely ignoring her.

May returned Gary's gesture. "It's nice to meet you too!"

"So tell me, are all of you going to stay for the entire celebration?"

Dawn opened her mouth to answer, but May spoke first. "Yeah, or at least, I am. It's a vacation that I've been waiting for for a while!" she finished, giggling. Now, it was Dawn's turn to heat up a bit inside. Sure, she thought Drew was cute. But she thought Gary was amazing!_ 'So what if May thinks Gary is great? I mean, she likes Drew, doesn't she?' _Both girls went into deep thought. Ash, Drew, and Gary sat awkwardly, wondering why the two were acting so . . . weird!

* * *

"Finally, we're off of the boat!" Misty grinned, then laughed. "Never thought I'd say that."

Paul felt awkward not saying anything for the first time that he could remember, so he said, "Why?"

Misty looked at him in slight interest. "Well, I'm a water-type trainer! Not that I even need to say it, but I love the water. A lot."

Paul simply nodded in understanding.

"Hey, uh, do you wanna go get some hot chocolate or something?" Misty felt odd saying that, so she added, "I still feel bad for snapping at you earlier."

"You don't need to repay me, you know."

"Yeah, I know, but I want to anyways." Her mind was made up, and would not be changed.

He looked into her eyes. She felt herself blush a bit, but didn't look away. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity to Misty, Paul said, "There's no way you're going to let me say no, is there?"

Misty shook her head.

"Okay, fine."

She smiled. "Neat! I, uh, think it's that way." She began walking off. Paul sighed. _'What am I getting myself into?' _he wondered, but followed anyways.

* * *

"So . . ." Ash attempted. The girls were still staring into their drinks silently, and it was beginning to creep him out.

Gary smiled a little. "Um, so, the celebration begins in three days. There's a lot of stuff we could do, so maybe we should all figure out what we should be doing. We could, you know, be a group."

No one answered. "Yeah, that'd be cool . . ." replied Ash.

Gary decided to try again. "So Dawn," he placed his hand on her shoulder, "how have your contests been going?"

She snapped out of her mini-trance and looked up, immediately blushing at his touch. "Er, uh . . . good I think!"

He blinked in confusion. "You think?" His hand hadn't left her shoulder. She giggled nervously.

"Yeah! I mean, I guess . . . What was the question again?"

Drew was observing Dawn's behavior towards Gary with a keen eye, completely ignoring May, who was watching Drew in slight anger and jealousy. Ash was stirring his hot chocolate in boredom, then began tearing open the packs of sugar on the table and dumping them in.

Gary laughed a bit. "Uh, never mind . . . How are your pokemon?" With his hand on her shoulder and his eyes staring deeply into hers, Dawn found herself grow very hot.

"I-Is it getting hotter in here . . . ?"

Ash finally began paying attention. "What? Not any warmer than it was Dawn- wait! Is this like you said earlier? About being in-"

Dawn threw herself across the table, successfully spilling both her and Ash's drinks, to slap her hand across his mouth. She ended up being uncomfortably close to Gary, as he was in between the two of them. All at the table were quite interested in her actions. Before she could be questioned, however, she mumbled heatedly,

"Can I speak with you, Ash? Over there?" Without waiting for an answer, she got up, grabbed hold of his arm, and dragged him to the other side of the cafe.

"Well that was weird," commented May. Gary looked down. She'd spilt the drinks on _him_. Glancing at his new companions, he remarked,

"Uh, can I have a napkin or two?" The others graciously complied.

There was another jingle at the door. "Oh, drat! All the tables are filled." Misty was saddened. She'd hoped to talk with Paul a little more. "Listen," she turned her full attention to him, and he to her. "I know talking isn't really your thing, but could you do me a favor and ask someone if we can share a table with them?"

"What? Why not just go somewhere else?"

Misty rolled her eyes. "Please, just do this one thing for me and I promise I'll do something for you later, okay? I'll owe you, just get us a table please!"

Paul let his mind go over that. "Something like what?" he asked.

"Something like something!" she answered, her voice rising in volume. "Will you just go? I'll order." With her hands on her hips and an intimidating look in her eyes, Paul figured he'd be better off just doing what she asked. _'Besides,' _he reasoned, _'she'll owe me . . .' _So Misty went over to order, and Paul wandered around, studying people to determine who'd be most likely to let two more people in at their table.

Finally, he came to a table of three, with two empty chairs. The three looked very bored and awkward sitting there, and he guessed an additional two wouldn't bug them too much. He didn't like what he was about to do, but he figured he might as well. It's not like he had anything much better to do. "Hey, are those seats taken?" he made himself say.

The three looked up. May was about to speak, but Gary cut her off. "Well, yeah, but this table's pretty big. We can fit one more." He grabbed some random empty chair from a nearby table and pulled it over between his and Ash's seat.

"How 'bout two?"

"Oh, you're with someone?" Paul scowled a bit at the way the question was phrased but nodded.

"Oh, okay then." He grabbed another chair and set it between Ash's and May's. Then he motioned for Paul to sit down beside him.

May had payed little attention to the newcomer, focusing more on Drew. So she hardly noticed the next few parts of the conversation.

"Hi, I'm Gary." He stuck his hand out to shake. Paul inwardly wondered why he bothered and hoped he wouldn't have to do this much anymore, but shook the hand anyways.

"Paul."

Drew and Gary hadn't heard of Ash's upcoming battle, and May was preoccupied.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the cafe . . .

After Dawn had gotten her and Ash out of earshot she let go of his arm. "Why did you say that?"

He looked at her in confusion. "I didn't think you'd mind! After all, it's the truth, right? I mean, you did a lot of the things I did earlier when I was talking to Misty."

Dawn sighed. "Look, Ash, would you like it if I walked up to Misty and told her you liked her?"

"But she's not here right now-"

"Not the point Ash! Would you like it?"

The boy diverted his eyes. "Probably not, but isn't it-"

"See? So why'd you almost tell Gary that I liked him?"

"So you do like him?"

The two were completely unaware of what was going on around them. All the tables nearby were watching this little soap opera unfold.

"Ugh! Yes! But still, that's not the point! Don't tell him I like him, okay?"

"Uh . . ."

"OKAY?"

"Ah! Okay! You don't need to yell!"

The table on the other side of the cafe heard Dawn's yell. "What was that?" asked May. Drew and Gary shrugged, and Paul couldn't care less.

"Paul, will you help me carry these?" came Misty's voice from the counter. She hadn't just ordered hot chocolate. She'd also ordered some snacks.

The young man really didn't feel like getting up, but did anyways, walking over to Misty.

"That must be his girlfriend," May said offhandedly after Paul was out of earshot. She still was focusing too much to recognize either Misty's voice or Paul's name. Gary knew he'd heard the voice somewhere, but didn't think too much into it. He figured he'd see her soon. Ash and Dawn were too deep in their little 'conversation' to notice the mention of Paul or the voice of Misty.

"Sheesh, how much did you get?" asked Paul. She'd practically ordered a banquet.

"Sorry," she laughed, "but I'm hungry."

"Mhm, whatever," he grumbled, reminding himself that she owed him. He gathered two packages of food and their two drinks in his hands. She picked up the last package of food and smiled.

"Thank you!" she said brightly.

"Whatever."

Her cheerful mood was swept away and turned into anger. "I believe the response you were looking for is 'You're welcome'?"

Paul was amazed at her change of moods and realized that this girl was dangerous when mad. "You're welcome," he muttered.

It wasn't heartfelt by any means, but it worked for Misty. "That's better. So where's our table?"

He started to turn around. "It's over he-"

Ash and Dawn had been walking back as well, and the two were still looking at each other.

Ash and Paul collided, as did Misty and Dawn. Food and drink scattered. Dawn screamed, attracting the attention of Gary and Drew, who immediately rose and rushed over. May followed.

"Misty?" Ash questioned.

"Ash! This is Paul." Misty was a bit upset that the food had been ruined, but she was thrilled to see her old friends again.

"Paul?" Dawn and Ash shouted simultaneously.

"Oh joy," he murmured. How'd he get himself into THIS incredible situation?

* * *

A/N Um, am I updating too much? If I am, I'm sorry! XD I'm just really getting into this story! I love it! This has gotta be one of the most fun things I've ever written. ^^

**R**eview Replies:

**Y**ugi937: Haha hope you liked this chapter's dose of it! ;)

**A**bility King KK: Yeah haha! By the way, is Paul OOC? Cause if he is, I'll totally fix that. Um, apparently she doesn't realize it yet ^^. Eh, it's not Angie . . . But I'm afraid she might be worse! XD Everybody's gonna probably despise me when she's revealed, but . . . OH WELL! :D She'll only come in towards the end, though. I'll give you all one hint: she's been in more than one episode. One thing, if you please: can you do me a HUGE favor and not swear in your reviews to me? I know I might sound uptight, but I just don't like it. If you'd do that for me, I'd really appreciate it. ^^ Thank you so much! :)

Now, to everybody, can I get some feedback on these few questions?

1) Do I update too often?

2) Is anyone OOC?

3) Does the story need more of something? If so, what?

4) Fun question! What was your first pokemon video game (assuming you've had one ^^)? Mine? Pokemon Silver for Gameboy Color.

THANK YOU EVERYONE! Remember, reviews are like birthday presents to writers. And I know it's not my birthday, but . . . :3

Finessefully,

X


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N I'm guessing no one thinks I own pokemon, but if you do, guess what! I don't.**

* * *

"Hum dee dum, well, looks like this is the place! Snowpoint Inn . . ." the girl looked around and saw people _everywhere_. She laughed. "Glad I got reservations!" She spoke quite loudly, and the people who were dashing around the city, struggling to find a place to stay glared in her direction. The girl didn't notice, and if she had, she wouldn't have cared.

* * *

"So, you two know each other?" Misty questioned slyly. After cleaning up and getting free food and drinks to replace what had spilled, the group had come back to their table.

Ash was confused and annoyed that Misty had brought Paul.

Misty was amused with how Ash was reacting, and happy to see her old friends and make some new ones.

Gary was befuddled, but glad some life was brought into the conversations thanks to Misty's entrance.

Drew was quiet and didn't really understand everything that was going on. He was observing Gary closely, however.

May was still jealous but quite happy Gary had joined the group, and also glad that Misty had come, taking her mind off of Drew.

Dawn was slightly annoyed with Paul's presence, delighted to meet Misty, and a tad bit possessive of Gary.

Paul wished that he'd never come to Snowpoint, never met Misty, and never entered the cafe. Unfortunately, Misty had dragged him to the table (quite literally) and made him stay with such a deadly glare that even Koga might feel himself terrified of her wrath.

In an answer to Misty's question, Ash responded with,

"Uh, yeah. I came here to battle him, actually." Ash didn't look at Paul, and vice-versa. Paul was scarcely restraining himself from throwing the table to the ground and leaving. Thankfully, Misty was keeping Ash's attention, and that _Dawn _girl was busy obsessing over this Gary guy he'd just met. So far, Paul liked Drew the best of his newfound 'companions'.

Misty looked shocked. "Wait, you mean, you're going to battle each other?"

Ash blinked. "That's what I just said . . ."

Paul gritted his teeth. The other trainer's voice made him want to punch something. But, he held it in. He didn't even know why, but he did.

"So Gary," Drew spoke for the first time in a while. "I take it you're a trainer."

"Well, yeah," Gary replied. "But I'm also a pokemon researcher."

"And a poet!" added Dawn enthusiastically. Gary looked at her questioningly, but said nothing.

"A poet, huh?" Drew mumbled. "I've written poetry before."

Dawn's eyes widened. "You have?"

May grew hot again. "Yeah, but so has Gary. I bet his poems are a billion times better than Drew's."

Everyone at the table (aside from Paul) stopped and looked at her. Blushing a bit, May said, "Er, why don't you recite some, Gary?"

Now, it was Gary's turn to go red. He'd never said he was a poet. He didn't know _why _Dawn told everyone he was. There was no way he could think of poetry like that on the spot! "Um, well . . ." He struggled with what to say.

"Why don't I recite some?" Drew asked.

Gary nodded earnestly. _'Whew. I'm off the hook,' _he thought in relief.

May snorted. "And what poetry do _you _know, Drew?"

He cast her a haughty look. "Why don't you try being quiet so you can find out?" The girl had no retort, and unhappily kept her mouth shut.

Drew stopped and thought for a moment. Then, he smiled. "I've got one," he said, grinning at Dawn. May couldn't restrain herself. She frowned and turned bright red. Taking a deep breath, he gazed into Dawn's eyes, and recited.

"None of yet who hath not felt this mystery of 'unrequited' might understand how hearts can pain, while being yet laid down again." It was poetic. It was beautiful. And Dawn adored it.

"Wow, Drew," she breathed, turning her full attention towards the boy. "I had no idea you were so . . . creative."

May seethed, but couldn't deny her amazement. "Yeah Drew, that was-"

"And so romantic!" the other girl gushed. "I had no idea you were like that! I mean, May always said that you were charming, but she didn't ever mention such amazing talent!"

Drew blushed a bit, and cast May an interested look. "You said I was charming?" He raised his eyebrows and cast her a smirk that threw May off the edge.

"I- I mean, Dawn, you should have . . . that was . . . I have to go do something!" She jumped up and ran out of the shop, eyes tearing up as she ran. She left the rest of the table in confusion.

* * *

**A**/n Well, what do you think? Doing all right? I know, it was a short chapter. The reason is below.

Nobody answered all the questions . . . :/ But I guess that's okay. Now I have something VERY important to ask, and it has to do with how the story will go! This is your chance to get MAJOR input, m'kay? So here it is: I can't decide between some ships of which should be in this story . . . So please vote in the poll on my profile! If no one does, then I guess I can't update . . . ;(

**R**eview Replies:

Ash's Mexican Girl: Thanks a billion! Your review means so much. :) By the way, I love what your profile says; about you being shiny. ;) Made me LOL.

Ability King KK: I appreciate your feedback very much. ^^ Thank you. And, er . . . well, no more hints! But there was a huge hint in the beginning of this chapter, so you'll all see, soon. I said I'd only add her in the end, but I'm changin' my mind.

Yugi937: I'm gonna keep things straight. In all my fics. Forever. JUST so you know.

Ppgojamajofan123: Thank you! I cheered when I read your review, it's my goal to make people laugh, considering it's a comedy. XD Also, like I said before, anime only. Leaf=Not in the Anime. Sorry.

**FINAL NOTE:** _REMEMBER TO VOTE!_ And also, I made up the poem that Drew recited. ^^ You like? ;)

Finessefully,

X

P.S. If the poll is different/doesn't work, please wait and try again or leave your answer in your review. BUT I'd rather have it in a poll, and the poll results will decide, NOT the review results.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/n **_I don't own pokemon. Please don't despise me for this chapter! ^^;_

* * *

Gary shot Drew a glare as he rose from his seat. "Why did you do that to May? She sure didn't do anything to you!" He stormed off after her, to try and calm her down. Dawn bit her lip.

"I-I shouldn't have said that. This is partly my fault." With that, she looked at Drew disapprovingly. "But really, I don't think you should have teased her like that either. I'm gonna go apologize, and you should too," she finished sternly. She then got up and followed Gary.

Misty, from the other side of the table, watched Drew.

'_Sheesh . . . way to screw it up, Drew.' _He hadn't had a clue that May had liked him. And he wouldn't have done that if he'd known it would hurt her. Really, he'd done it for Dawn. He had been instantly attracted to her when he'd seen her, and had thought that she would appreciate the poetry.

Maybe, he reasoned, he should've considered that giving girls flowers means you _like _them. Maybe his sudden kindness today had raised her hopes that he liked her back. He felt like slamming his head against the table. How had he missed something so obvious?

He still couldn't find that he returned May's feelings, but he felt really bad for hurting her. He decided he needed to talk to her; to make things right. Maybe him telling her he didn't like her would sting her at first, but surely it was better than leading her on, as he had done unknowingly for who knows how long.

"Drew?" Misty's voice broke Drew's thoughts. "Drew, are you okay?" Ash looked at Misty in amazement. She sounded . . . kind. Even to this boy who had hurt May. Now, Ash was more puzzled than before. Paul, whether he liked it or not, caught himself enjoying the sound of the girl's voice.

He looked up, frowning. "No."

Misty averted her eyes. "Listen . . . you messed up. But-" she grinned a tiny bit. "-it was a pretty poem."

Drew couldn't help it. His expression changed slightly from depressed to a warm sort of openness. "Thanks, Misty. I think I'm gonna go talk to May." He got up and left in the same direction as the other three, leaving Misty, Ash, and Paul at the table.

* * *

"May! May!" The girl heard Gary's voice behind her, but she didn't stop running. She didn't even know where she was going, but she felt like she needed to keep moving for some reason. She soon had to slow down, though. The cold air rushing into her lungs was too much.

"May!"

She turned and looked at Gary with tears running down her face. She felt so utterly foolish for crying over _him, _but she couldn't stop now. She was touched by Gary's kindness to her, though. He had barely known her for long and was already showing her compassion. She blushed shyly as she caught herself thinking that he was every bit as handsome as Drew.

The boy ran up, panting. "May, are you all right?"

The mere sound of his gentle voice sent her into sobs once more. He put his hand on her shoulder in comfort. "Drew shouldn't have acted that way. I- I'm sorry that happened to you."

May felt herself calm a little at his words. He was so disarming, so open. She remembered Ash telling the group about how awful Gary was, but he had apparently changed his ways.

"I feel kinda silly for acting that way," she sniffed. "After all . . . it's not like I expected him t-to like me back or anything . . ." A sob made it's way up and caught in her throat. She cried again.

"May! May, I'm sooooo sorry!" It was Dawn. "I can't believe I said that in front of everybody. I should've thought before I acted . . ." The girl ran up beside the other two. "Can you forgive me, May?"

The other girl found herself laughing despite her sobs. "Of course, Dawn!" The girls embraced, and Gary backed up a bit.

"Dawn, May, there's something you should know," the boy said in a stern voice.

The two looked over, now parted. "What is it?" asked Dawn.

"I'm not a poet."

They all laughed. Yes, Gary was quite wonderful, May figured. Better than _Drew _anyways.

"Ahem." The three glanced towards the source of the noise. Gary glared, Dawn sympathized, and May frowned.

"What do you want, Drew?" the other boy demanded. Sure, he'd only just met him. But anyone who would do that to a girl, Gary supposed, was not someone whom he needed to be polite with.

Drew leveled his gaze at Gary. "I'm here to talk with May. Alone."

Dawn grinned a bit. "Good. C'mon, Gary." The girl led him away, back to the cafe, and Drew and May were left to themselves.

"What is it?" the girl questioned bitterly, turning from him.

"May," Drew sighed, "I came here to apologize."

These words caught May off-guard.

"I feel really bad for embarrassing you in front of everyone, and hurting you. I-" Drew ran his hand through his hair. "I had no idea you liked me."

"Really?" May turned her eyes to Drew.

"Yeah, really. I'm sorry if I led you on or something. That wasn't my intention, I swear."

May looked down. "You don't like me, do you?" It was more of a statement than a question.

Drew smiled, genuinely. "Not like that, May. But," he took a deep breath. "we can be friends." This was more of a question than a statement. He stuck his hand out.

May let her eyes meet Drew's. They were serious. She still stung a bit from before, but was so pleased with this side of Drew that she'd never seen before; sensitive, candid, nice. She resolved not to let her heart be broken, and to just be friends with him.

She grinned widely. "Deal," she replied, shaking his hand. "But, we're still rivals, right?"

Drew took on a cocky air again as he withdrew his hand. "Of course! And don't think I'm gonna lose to you." Normally, she might've gotten a bit upset at that statement, but his friendly wink towards her as he said it assured her that she had nothing to be mad about. All was forgiven and forgotten. And perhaps her heart would find that there was someone else for her; someone who would be much better for her than Drew.

* * *

"A cafe? I hope they have hot chocolate!" a loud voice rung throughout the area, and the girl burst into the small building.

Ash, Misty, and Paul were sitting in an awkward silence, unsure of what to say or how to say it. Paul felt it worst of all. But unbeknownst to the three, their time was about to get even more awkward with the arrival of a certain person.

Ash was taken with shock and chagrin when a familiar voice chimed through the cafe. "Oh, man! It's a pikachu!"

* * *

**A/n **Everybody know who the mystery girl is now? :3 HAHA okay please don't detest me for that, but, er, I just had to. ;)

**R**eview **R**eplies:

**A**bility King KK: Well, I tried to fix him up in this chapter. XD

**A**sh's Mexican Girl: Thanks for the review! :3 You know who the mystery girl is now, though, right? XD

**N**amia: Thanks for reading and reviewing! Haha nope not Lyra. ;)

**N**GA 114: Muchas gracies! (lo siento, looks like I spelled it wrong DX)

**H**iya-exclamationpoint: Well, he didn't exactly know why he was acting like that anyways. But I'll try to keep everybody in-character. Might be kinda hard since I haven't seen the anime in forever. XD But I'm doin' my best! :)

As for the identity of the mystery person, if you can't tell who she is from the last thing she said, then you'll just have to wait for the next update. :) And for those of you who DO know, I'm sorry if you think I'm absolutely insane for pairing them together, I just can't help it. Ever since the first episode with her in it, I thought they'd make a good couple. XD Btw, I can't find the proper name for this ship. So, in case there's no name for it, it will now be known as Electricshipping (also the name of a ship with a plusleXminun, but this is a fic about humans so I highly doubt people are gonna get confuzzled about it)! :D But if there's another name for it, please enlighten me. Thanks!

Remember to review please! Reading without reviewing is like taking candy from a store without paying . . . ;(

Finessefully,

X


	7. Chapter 7

**A/n **_Surprise, surprise, y'all! I don't own Pokemon! _

* * *

Drew and May caught up with Gary and Dawn. Dawn looked over at the two. "Well? Is everything all right?"

May smiled. "Yup! Thanks, you guys. I think I kinda overreacted, and I'm sorry."

Gary gazed at the girl kindly. "No, you didn't overreact, May."

Drew sighed.

"Well, there are better things we can talk about," May remarked, after noticing the tension between the two boys.

Dawn gasped. "I just realized something. We left Ash, Misty, and Paul by themselves."

"So?" asked Gary.

"So Ash and Paul can't stand each other!"

Drew laughed. "Well that's gotta be interesting." Gary laughed as well, but Dawn rolled her eyes.

"I hope they don't blow up on each other or something."

* * *

Pikachu came dashing back, ketchup bottle clutched to his chest, being chased by a girl who he remembered a bit too well.

"Come back here, little fella- Oh my goodness! Ash Ketchum, is that you?"

Misty snapped to attention, looking up from her beverage in interest.

Ash looked away, but it was too late. She'd already recognized him. "Wow! And Misty too! Where's Brock? And who's that?" asked the girl, pointing a finger directly into Paul's face. He stared at the girl in agitation.

"Er . . . Paul, this is Casey . . . Casey, Paul," the boy obliged.

Paul did not look pleased.

"Nice to meet'cha! Mind if I join you guys?" Without waiting for a reply, she pulled over a chair between Ash and Paul and plopped herself down.

"So Paul, are you a trainer?" Still glaring into his drink, he grumbled,

"Yes."

"Sweet!" the girl gushed. "Can I see your pokemon?"

"No," he growled.

Completely disregarding him, Casey turned her attention to Ash.

"Hey, guess what!"

She continued staring at him in eagerness until he answered.

He sighed. "I dunno, Casey, what?"

"I CAUGHT A PICHU!" she screeched, causing Paul and Ash both to fall out of their chairs.

"You wanna see her?" she questioned as she pulled Ash back up to his chair.

Paul got up and began to walk away, leading Misty to stand up, walk after him, and drag him back to his seat.

"Uh . . . sure. But can you not yell anymore? It kinda hurt . . ."

The girl laughed. "Oh sure sorry. Well, come on out Pichu!" she called out.

The tiny pokemon was standing on the table, looking around at the trainers.

"_Hm . . . Hi Casey! Oh! More peoples."_ She hopped over directly in front of Ash. _"Smells weird."_ Misty was next. _"Scary looking!"_ she shivered. Now, to Paul._ "Hm . . . I like you!"_ She leapt into his lap.

"What on Earth . . . ? Get off!" he commanded the tiny pokemon, but it wouldn't budge. Casey laugh grated on Paul's ears.

"Aw, I think she likes you!"

Pikachu peeked up from underneath the table. _"Is she gone- who're you?"_ he questioned the Pichu.

Pichu looked up from her new-favorite-human's lap. Instantly, her heart began racing. _"Oh wow . . ."_

She jumped up onto the table and raced over to Pikachu. _"H-hi! I'm Pichu!"_ she giggled.

Paul stared at the scene in confusion, as did Ash. Casey and Misty were gushing. "Awwww! I think Pichu has a little crush on Pikachu!" said Misty.

"That's adorable!" Casey raved.

The door jingled once more. "Oh, not again!" moaned Ash. He looked over. "Oh, haha, just you guys," he said sheepishly.

The others returned to their places in confusion.

"Um, Ash? Who is this?" May questioned.

"I'm Casey. Good to meet'cha. And you people are . . . ?"

"I'm May."

"Dawn!"

"Um, Drew."

"Gary."

"Cool! So you guys are Ash's friends, huh?"

"Yup!" Dawn responded. Just then, one of Dawn's pokeballs shook. "Huh?" Buneary popped out and scanned the area immediately for Pikachu.

_"Oh, Pikachu! I'm-"_ the pokemon paused in utter disbelief. Some Pichu was fawning all over her Pikachu!

_"Who are you?"_ she growled.

Pichu looked over._ "Oh, hi! I'm Pichu. That's my trainer,"_ she said, pointing to Casey, _"and that's my new favorite person,"_ she referred to Paul.

The humans watched the scene in interest, and the girls laughed at Pichu's interest in Paul.

"What's that about?" asked Misty, giggling. "Looks like someone likes you, Paul!"

Paul reddened slightly, then angrily reprimanded himself. He shouldn't be embarrassed. After all, Misty was just some girl. It didn't matter what she said.

Right?

* * *

**A/n **_I know, I know. Short chapter. REVIEW REPLIES! :D_

_**T**o Vaprissqueen: Howdeh! Okay, haha. ^_~ Thanks for reading! AND reviewing! :D_

_**T**o Ash's Mexican Girl: You like her? ^^ She's a fun character to write! Thank you thank you! _

_**T**o WhimsicalDaydreamer: *_* Y-y-y-y-y-you liked my poetry . . . . ? THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! :D And you sure were right about Pikachu and ketchup. ;)_

_**T**o Carribeanqueen3: Thanks so much! Glad to write something even pokeshippers like! ;) Well I like pokeshipping too. _

_**T**o Ability King KK: You got it right! ;D Oh, and thanks for giving me the ship's real name. That's helpful. _

_Sorry about the chapter length. I swear I'll write something longer (and hopefully better) next chapter! _

_Finessefully,_

_X_


	8. Chapter 8

**A/n **_I don't own pokemon in any way, shape, or form. I can't promise that I don't in an alternate universe, however. ;)_

* * *

Time passed, and the trainers were still at the cafe.

Casey was blabbering on about something that only Ash was remotely interested in (and even then, he was only half listening).

Ash was pretending to pay attention to everybody and wondering if there were any trainers nearby in the mood for a battle.

Misty was having a nice conversation with May, glaring at Paul every now and then if he seemed like he was getting up.

Paul was waiting for the right oppurtunity to get away, watching Misty, hoping she would become too engrossed in her chit-chat to notice him missing.

Drew was having a stiff talk with Gary, mostly with either of them asking yes or no questions and the other curtly answering.

Dawn was thinking about what had gone on during the day, whilst keeping a careful watch on Buneary, who looked like she was ready to ice beam the little pichu.

Pikachu wasn't quite sure what was going on; one second he was holding onto a ketchup bottle, the next, Buneary was clutching one of his paws, Pichu holding the other, both girls glaring at each other.

Poor Pikachu didn't know what to think.

Drew rose from his seat abruptly after his 'conversation' had died. "Well, it was nice seeing you all, but I need to go now." With that, he left the cafe without looking back. Gary decided that, despite the fact that it had been _Drew's _doing, it was a good idea. So he followed, offering up a similar goodbye speech.

Paul hoped that he could leave now, but he was beaten to the punch by Dawn. And Paul did _not _want to end up leaving with her; who knows? She might expect him to do something like hold the door open for her, and he wasn't in the mood for that (not that he ever was).

Dawn noticed that Buneary was _quite _reluctant to leave, but figured that she'd get into her pokeball without problems. That was a mistaken thought.

The little pokemon refused, point-blank, to get back into the capsule. It took Pikachu's pleas before she finally returned, and Dawn was free to go, May leaving with her.

That left Casey, Ash, Misty, and Paul, along with Pikachu and the enthusiastic little Pichu.

Casey _still _hadn't let up from her chatter, Ash was now _extremely _bored, but didn't want to hurt Casey's feelings, and Misty was half-listening to Casey, hoping that once the girl left, she and Ash might be able to catch up.

Paul had had enough.

He rose from the table, ignoring Misty, and began to leave. Misty got up and followed him out of the little store. Ash, Casey, and their pokemon mimicked the action.

Paul turned to look at Misty, completely disregarding the other two. "Listen, I don't care if you owe me, the time spent in there was mind-numbing and I'm not gonna go through it again!"

Misty crossed her arms and furrowed her brows in thought. "You think you're some hot-shot trainer, don't you?"

"What?"

"I said, you think you're some great wonderful trainer, right?"

Paul blinked. "I wouldn't say it like that, but I'm not some loser if that's what you're asking." At the word 'loser', Paul cast a glance towards Ash.

What was Misty getting at? Why the sudden change of topic? All there seemed unaware of what direction the girl was headed, but Misty had it clear in her mind. This guy needed an attitude adjustment, and she was just the girl to dish it out.

* * *

"So May . . . did you, uh, patch things up with Drew?" The other girl focused her attention on her companion.

"Yeah, I did." Pausing, she added, "Thanks for everything, Dawn. Really. You were really kind." _'Come to think of it, so was Gary . . .' _added May's subconscious.

Dawn smiled at her friend.

"I'm just glad everything worked out okay."

"So, um . . . Dawn?"

"Yes?"

"Do you like Drew?"

Dawn paused. How should she answer this question? "Well . . ." He _was _handsome. He had great poetry. He could be mean, but had a kind heart, though sometimes it was buried under a _tad _bit of conceit. Okay, tad bit was an understatement. But Dawn couldn't deny that she liked him. Or at least, her heart couldn't. Her mind, on the other hand . . .

"I think he's kinda, well, you know. I guess I kinda do, but not really." She stopped, then quickly added, "But I do like Gary!" She hadn't been blind to Gary's kindness to May, and her eagerness to chat with him. Realizing just what she was thinking, she wondered if Buneary was rubbing off on her.

May nodded. "I see. Well, that's nice." There was something in May's voice that Dawn couldn't distinguish. "Does he know?"

The other girl blushed. "I, uh . . . don't know. I mean, I'm not exactly hiding it, but I could never say it out loud!"

"Hm . . ." What was May thinking? Dawn didn't have a clue. "Does that have anything to do with you practically jumping over the table?"

Dawn immediately reddened brightly. "Kinda."

May giggled at the other girl's reaction. "Only kinda? C'mon, Dawn, you spilled your hot chocolate all over Gary to keep Ash quiet. There had to be _some _important reason!"

"I spilled my hot chocolate all over him?"

"And Ash's," May laughed.

"Oh my goodness, I had no idea!" Her face was hot and she was overwhelmed with embarrassment.

"Don't worry, Dawn, he got cleaned up. But, uh, why did you do it?"

"Okay, you got me. I did it because Ash was going ask me if I liked Gary. In front of _everyone_. I didn't know what I would've done if he'd asked, so I had to make sure he didn't!"

The brunette was quite amused. "Well, at least you kept him quiet."

"Y-you won't tell Gary, will you?"

May smiled warmly. "Of course not, Dawn!" She wouldn't have even considered such a thing. But her mind was twisting in an unfamiliar way. For some reason, Dawn's confession left her head spinning. Why wasn't this information sitting well with her? Why didn't she like what her friend had just said? May didn't understand, and she wasn't sure why.

* * *

Paul was trying to figure out where Misty was leading this conversation.

"Okay, Mr. I'm-So-Wonderful, let's make a deal."

"A deal?"

"Yup! I challenge you to a battle. You win, and I leave you alone, you can go off and do whatever you'd like, and I'll see you during your battle with Ash."

Paul couldn't help it. Emotion came through as he cocked an eyebrow at Misty's interesting offer.

"And if _I _win, then I get to take you around the Winter Celebration with me, and you're released from the agreement after your battle with Ash."

He barely considered.

"No. I'm leaving." As Paul turned to walk away, Misty called out,

"Are you afraid you'll lose?" He froze in place. His pride wouldn't allow him to take that insult.

"I won't lose." He looked over at her. "You've got yourself a deal." Ash and Casey were watching in shock.

"Well . . ." Ash managed, "this will be interesting."

* * *

**A/n **As I said, longer! Is it better? :3

**R**eview Replies:

WhimsicalDaydreamer: Poor Pikachu . . . Every time he gets ketchup, someone has to go and ruin it. ;) Thanks SO much for reading and reviewing! It's so nice of you! :3

Ash's Mexican Girl: Yeah, I figured, _'Hey, this is a pokemon story, let's add some actual pokemon into the mix.' _I gave Casey a Pichu because she deserved one. ^^ Or so I believe.

Ability King KK: Well, there's always puppy love. Yeah, well . . . just wait til next chapter XD

Ravengal: You read my story! *_* I was actually inspired by your story and Aiselne Phoenix Nocturnus's stories about Lagomorphshipping to write some of my own. ^_~ Well . . . your final question brings me to one of my own . . .

ALL RIGHT PEOPLES, LISTEN UP! I have a question . . . Do any of you people want more characters in this story? The pairings I've chosen are now set in stone in my mind, so those aren't going to change, but I'd be willing to add a few characters in for fun. Kenny, Zoey, Barry, Tracey, Brock, the Rockets . . . anyone who's been in more than one episode. Also, any characters from the movies Lucario and the Mystery of Mew and before, I haven't seen the movies made after that. Or, no added characters at all. I don't mind. ^_~ Just specify whether or not you'd like anyone added in your review, and if so, who you'd want added.

Remember to review! Because . . . if you don't . . . well, let's just say that'd be bad.

;)

Finessefully,

X


	9. Chapter 9

**A/n I still don't own pokemon. *sigh***

* * *

"A-are you sure it costs that much?" May stuttered. The lady at the counter sighed.

"I'm sorry, Miss, but the deluxe luxury are the only rooms we have left, and we aren't allowed to discount the prices, especially now since the demand for rooms has gone up so much."

The lobby was filled with people, but at present, May was the only one Dawn was thinking about. She felt so bad for her! "M-May . . ." Dawn intervened, drawing the girl's attention from the counter. "Why don't you stay in my room? We'll have to take turns sleeping on the couch, or something, or I could just stay on the couch, it's up to you." She took a deep breath. "Anyways, wouldn't it be better than going to _another _hotel? Besides, I'm staying in this one as it is!"

May forced a smile. "Dawn . . . I don't want to take up your room. Besides, I'll be fine. There are still some hotels and inns I haven't checked yet, and one of them is bound to have an affordable room!"

The other girl studied her in confusion. "May, are you seriously going back out into the cold to go to _another _hotel that doesn't have any space? Just stay with me!"

"I couldn't possibly intrude, besides, you paid for it already."

"That's fine, May!" Dawn argued. "Please, just-"

"Excuse me, Miss?" It was the lady at the counter again. "Here is your room key. Your stay is from December thirteenth to February sixteenth, and your checkout time is at eleven AM sharp. If you need anything, simply use the phone in your room and call the lobby, all right? And have a wonderful stay!" she finished with a smile. May looked at the key. 'Room 717'.

"Um . . . I don't have enough money for a room, remember?" May managed.

The lady returned her attention to May. "Hm? Oh, well that young man just offered to pay." She gestured behind the two girls. They turned in confusion.

"Hey! Those are my bags!" shouted May. Some guy was seriously trying to steal from her, in front of all these people?

The boy looked up. "Oh, hi!" He grinned. "I'm Brendan. I noticed you were in a bit of a scrap, so I decided to help out with your hotel costs. That's okay, right? And I'll take your luggage, too."

The girls stared, dumbfounded. Dawn cast a sly glance towards May. "Looks like someone has a not-so-secret admirer," she whispered. The other girl became quite red as she watched some stranger walk off with her bags.

"W-wait a second!" May ran after him, Dawn hot on her heels. She was watching this little situation in interest, and soon a plan was forming in her mind. Not that she was upset with May or anything, no, not at all. But she couldn't have her Gary-err, Gary! Just Gary-taken away from her, even by her best friend. Of course, May wouldn't remain crush-less, though. Dawn figured that if this Brendan guy admired her enough to pay for her hotel room for two _months_, he must obviously be attracted to her. All Dawn needed to do was pull the right strings and Voila!, a couple would be formed.

She just hoped he wasn't fresh out of prison or something. Okay, _maybe_ they should get to know him a bit before she played matchmaker, but that wouldn't be too much of a problem. Yes, Gary would be safe-err, May would have a new guy to crush on. Yeah. THAT was why Dawn wanted to pair those two together. Well, whatever the reason, she decided to get started the only way she knew how. As they entered the elevator with Brendan, she decided to begin with a simple ice-breaker question.

"So, Brendan, are you dating anyone? Oh! Forgot the introductions. I'm Dawn, and _this,_" she said with emphasis, "is May. She's single."

May felt like hitting her head against the wall. She'd like to have a little talk with Dawn about people and their personal lives, but an elevator-with a BOY in it!- was not the right place to do so.

Brendan turned a bit pink at the last announcement of Dawn's. "Er, no, I'm not dating anyone."

"How great!" Dawn chimed. The air was quickly getting awkward. "Hey Brendan, what's your favorite color?"

"Eh, green I guess. Why?"

"Oh just wondering . . . Wait a second! That's May's favorite color too!"

"No, it's-" May attempted, but was interrupted by Dawn yet again.

"What kind of movies do you like?"

"Action movies with lots of explosions."

"May does too!"

"I do no-"

It was time for the most important question, Dawn decided. If he failed this, then he was certainly not the right guy for May. But she'd feel kind of bad if he answered wrong. After all, Brendan and May had so much in common!

"Do you like pokemon contests?"

Brendan paused. May flared in embarrassment, confusion, and annoyance. Dawn held her breath with anxiety.

"Well, watching them, yeah. The contestants are usually really good at what they do!" Whew. He passed the test.

"That's great! May here, she's really good at contests."

"What about you-"

"That's beside the point! Oh, you know, you two have so much in common, you should go to the Festival with each other!"

Brendan shot May a very confused look, and May returned with an exasperated one. She didn't know what Dawn was up to, but from the looks of it, it wasn't good.

"Well, I don't have anyone else to go with. Sure!" he replied. May didn't understand what was with people these days! She didn't even know this guy! The elevator opened, and the brunette rushed out in relief. Dawn grinned knowingly as Brendan carried all of May's luggage. The trio soon reached room 717.

"I'll just leave this stuff here. I guess I'll see you guys in a couple of days. Oh! Here's my number, in case we can't find each other." He pulled out a scrap of paper from his pocket and began writing on it (with a pen that was in his other pocket). May considered calling the police and telling them she had a stalker, but Dawn graciously accepted the piece of paper.

"May is so grateful!" Dawn said, beaming. May face-palmed and wished she could be elsewhere.

"Okay, neat." The poor boy didn't exactly know what was going on. "Well, I'll be going now." Once he left, May was free to vent.

"What on Earth was that, Dawn?"

"Hm?" She faked an innocent expression. "What was what?"

May rolled her eyes. "C'mon, let's talk about it in my hotel room." She opened the door and pulled Dawn in with her.

* * *

**A/n **Gaspeth! Yes, I'm still alive! I actually wrote another chapter! Yay! *happy dance* It took kinda long 'cause first I was sick, then I accidentally erased the whole story from my computer *headdesk*, then I was lazy. But here it is! Chapter nine! Yay! By the way, peoples, I think (if I keep writing it, that is) this will be a LONG story, so, uh, yeah.

REVIEW TIME!

**King Boo: **I would if I could but *sigh* I'm really not that great at writing them . . . I could try, but it'd probably be really bad.

**Ability King KK: **Oh yes, y'see, that's why they'd make such a good couple! XD

**Hiya-Exclamationpoint: **Thank you very much, and okay, I'll work on that.

**Yugi937: **THAT'S gonna be an interesting battle. XD

**Dewdrop6: **0_0 Really? AW THANKS A BILLION! I'm sorry I'm so slow, though. ;_;

**Neon-Night-Light: **Believe it or not, I'm a contestshipper too! XD I just think there's too much contestshipping around at the moment (and some of it not that well written).

**Dewdrop6 (again): **I haven't seen the episode with Lyra. I'd either have to watch it, or wing it and see what happens. XD Well, yeah, might add her. She could make things REALLY interesting! ^^

I'm sorry I took so long to update! I'll try to be faster next time.

Finessefully,

X


	10. Chapter 10

**A/n I STILL don't own pokemon. Time for plan 1,847 . . . **

* * *

_"Are you afraid you'll lose?" He froze in place. His pride wouldn't allow him to take that insult. _

_ "I won't lose." He looked over at her. "You've got yourself a deal." Ash and Casey were watching in shock. _

_ "Well . . ." Ash managed, "this will be interesting."_

* * *

Misty allowed a bit of self-confidence to bubble up within her. "Good. Right here, right now, three on three."

Paul narrowed his eyes. "Fine."

"Wait wait wait! In the streets? Are you guys sure?" Casey interrupted. Misty blushed. She'd forgotten where they were.

"Uh, right. Well . . . we can, um . . ."

"Go over there." Paul referenced to a large, open area, free from tourists, tall grass, and the like. The other three agreed and headed over.

"I'll be the ref-"

"No I'll do it! Please, Ash, please let me be the referee!" Casey begged.

Ash sighed. "Yeah, um, okay Casey. Go ahead."

"Yes! This'll be just like the game between the Electabuzz and the-"

"No one cares! Can you stop talking so we can get on with our battle?" Paul grumbled.

"Well ex-cuse me!" she huffed. Clearing her throat, she announced, "So, it's a three on three pokemon match. Got it?" The two nodded. "Okay then. The battle between Paul from . . ." she trailed off.

"Veilstone!" he hissed, obviously annoyed with the girl.

"Oh, _sor-ry. _The battle between Paul from Veilstone City and Misty from Cerulean City will now commence!"

"Commence?" Ash questioned.

Casey rolled her eyes. "It sounds cooler, okay?"

Misty produced a pokeball from her belt. "Let's get this started. Go, Staryu!" The pokemon shot out of its capsule and awaited instructions dutifully.

Paul grinned-cockily, of course-and duplicated the action with his own pokeball. Out of it, however, came a nidoking. It roared and stomped the ground, ready for a battle. "Huh? But Nidoking is weak against water-types . . ." Casey mused aloud.

"Don't underestimate Paul," Ash replied, eyes narrowing, trying to discern what the trainer's strategy would be.

"Staryu! Start with swift!" The pokemon obeyed, sending a shower of star shaped energy beams flying for the much larger pokemon. Paul muttered something under his breath. He had to think quick, swift was an attack that couldn't be avoided.

"Nidoking! Use earth power!" Nidoking did as it was told. It began glowing with a golden light, and even as the swift hit its body, the glow came brighter and brighter. The ground then started to crack beneath Nidoking, traveling to Staryu and injuring it.

"Shake it off, Staryu! Use counter!" The star-shaped water type flew in and slammed into Nidoking, doing a good deal of damage. "All right!" The girl cheered.

"This is far from over for Nidoking. Use double kick!" Staryu, having no time to dodge, was thrust to the ground from the force of the attack.

"Let's go for the type advantage, Staryu. Use water gun!" Misty let herself smile, but it disappeared as quickly as it had come thanks to Paul's next command.

"Thunderbolt, Nidoking!" It complied, and despite the torrent of water coming in fast, the electricity was able to move a good deal faster than the liquid, and hit Staryu dead-on.

Of course, that didn't stop the powerful stream of water either, and both pokemon were down for the count.

Casey and Ash gaped at the scene developing. Both trainers were powerful, but which one would come out on top?

"Good work, Staryu. Come on back." She recalled the fainted pokemon, then reached for another pokeball. Paul did the same.

"Go Weavile!"

"Come on out Corsola!"

The pokemon watched their opponents closely, ready to jump at the sound of their trainer's voice.

Paul thought for a moment. All of Weavile's ice attacks would only do half damage, which meant he was left with only a few attacks to deal with the little pink pokemon.

"Metal claw, Weavile!"

"Corsola, use spike cannon!"

The dark-type was too quick for the spikes, instead using them as launch pads to speed itself up as it pushed off of them. The metal claw hit corsola, and hard.

Misty bit her lip. "Use bubblebeam, then recover!" The pokemon attempted to follow its trainer's orders.

"Don't let it heal, Weavile. Use faint attack!" Weavile faded into sudden shadows, easily avoiding the bubblebeam. Corsola was left in slight fear, trying to heal as quickly as possible. "Now!" The pokemon lashed out in a sudden movement, causing a quick loss of consciousness for the water-type.

"Drat." Misty recalled Corsola. "Nice try. You deserve a break." Analyzing Paul, she found-to her contempt-that he thought he had this battle already won. Not if _she _could help it.

"This isn't over till I say it is. Go, Gyarados!" The dragon-like pokemon weaved its way out of the beam of light and into its menacing place, hovering over the ground with a dark glare.

"Let's finish this. Weavile, ice beam!"

Misty grinned. "That's what you think! Gyarados, flamethrower!" The last command shocked the other three trainers.

"W-what?" Casey managed as the water-type let out a deafening roar. Flames immediately melted the ice beam and traveled to Weavile in a split second, frying the pokemon.

Paul recovered from his astonishment. "Hm. Return, Weavile." With a smirk, he said, "You know, you're a better trainer than I thought. Too bad you're going to lose, though."

Misty smiled, determination written in her expression. "Oh really? And how is that?"

"With this. Let's wrap this up, Electivire!"

Casey's heart stopped as the majestic electric pokemon was out of its pokeball and onto the battlefield. "No. Way." She took a deep breath. "AN ELECTIVIRE OH MY GOODNESS!" She nearly ran out to hug it, but Ash held her back.

"Hey! It's a battle, remember? Don't do anything too crazy!"

"Oh, yeah . . ." she remembered sheepishly. "I'll have to get a better look later."

Ash was struck for a second that she'd actually heard his warning. He'd expected her to yell something about baseball and storm off, ruin the battle, infuriate Paul, etc. Instead she'd done something . . . responsible. _'Hm. Maybe she's grown up a bit.' _Ash didn't let his thoughts linger on Casey too long, though. After all, this battle was much more pressing an interest at the moment.

Paul still had the conceited air of someone who knew they were going to win, but Misty didn't look all that nervous. In fact, she still looked fairly confidant. "If you think you've already won this match, you couldn't be farther from the truth. Gyarados, headbutt!"

"Electivire, dodge and use thunderpunch!" The electric-type followed through with both, landing a potent electric attack on Gyarados. It roared in pain but was still able to battle.

"Let's try whirlpool!" The attack itself wasn't very effective, but it served the purpose Misty wanted it to; that being trapping Electivire.

Paul closed his eyes in thought. "Thunder!"

"Dodge, and hit it with hyper beam!" the girl called out. Gyarados successfully dodged what could have been the finishing move quite easily and, with Electivire stuck in one place, let loose with a hyper beam that brought Electivire's health down severely. However, whirlpool finally broke off.

"Don't give it another chance to attack, Electivire. Thunderpunch!"

Electivire ran towards its target, locked on and moving quick. If Misty couldn't think of a good defense for this, Gyarados was done for.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up and she smiled in satisfaction as she shouted, "Let's end this, Gyarados! Earthquake!"

The trainers gaped as Gyarados hit Electivire full on with a super effective attack it had no way of evading. The electric type collapsed directly.

"E-Electivire is u-unable to battle," Casey stuttered. "Misty from Cerulean City is the winner!"

Paul was still locked in his amazement as he recalled his defeated pokemon. Electivire had lost . . . to a dual water-flying type. "You're pretty good!" Misty said, approaching him after having returned her pokemon. "I haven't had a battle like this in a very long time." She stuck her hand out in good sportsmanship, but he didn't return the gesture.

"Fine. Be that way," she said as she pulled back her arm. "But remember," she added in a sing-song voice, "we've got a deal."

* * *

_A/n _Well, finally got that written! I feel so productive at the moment. :)

**Review Replies: **

_Ash's Mexican Girl: Yup, just a little bit. ;) I've updated! Yay!_

_Vamprissqueen: She makes me smile too. :) Thanks so much! *_* You have no idea how much I adore compliments like that._

_Ability King KK: Glad you like it! Heheh, she'll be sorta unable to do that . . . They don't call them 'luxury rooms' for no reason! _

Well . . . hope all y'all liked the battle! I'm not sure whether or not I write battle scenes very well, but oh well. They're fast moving and pretty fun to write, at that.

ANYways, now that you've read, might you endow upon me the greatest honor of a review? One word, one page-worth, you despise it, you love it, you think I write horribly, you like my writing style, anything really. I mean, other than swearing. So, uh, yeah . . . reviews? :3

Finessefully,

X

P.S. Please don't say that Casey was OOC for using the word 'commence'. C'mon, it is WAY cooler than begin, or start. Casey knows that. So, uh, yeah.


	11. Chapter 11

_A/n Lyke no wai ppls, I don't own pokemon!11!11!1!_

* * *

"Dawn, I-" May began, but was quickly silenced in awe. The suite she had just pulled her friend into was _beautiful. _The decor was simple, but had a very delicate touch to it. The colors were mostly a pearly white with golden accents. It had two rooms-one a bedroom, one a living room-and a large, luxurious bathroom. The bed was _huge, _as was the living room area, which held three couches, a plasma television, and a nice sized coffee table. To add to all that, the suite also had a kitchen.

"Oh. Wow. He must really like you!" Dawn chimed.

"Dawn . . ." May didn't have a response. The room was huge, fancy, and classy. "Why did he do this for me?"

"I can only think of one reason," the other girl hinted.

"Oh, Dawn. Don't be silly. Besides, you really embarrassed me back there!"

"I'm sorry I embarrassed you, May. I was honestly just trying to help you. You don't want to go to the celebration alone, do you?"

May sighed. "I'm not going alone. I've got you and the others to go with!"

"What if we go as couples, though?"

"C-couples?" She hadn't thought of that. "That would be silly. Why in Sinnoh would we go as couples?"

"I don't know. But it _is _possible, May. Besides, you might as well go with Brendan. He seemed pretty nice, after all, he payed for all this, didn't he?"

"Yeah, that was way sweet," May allowed. "But I still don't know him that well."

"That's where the celebration comes in! You can get to know him better through hanging out with him!"

"Maybe . . . It still seems a bit weird, though."

"Mhm, okay. Well, whatever. If you say so. But now at least we've made a new friend, right?"

"R-right." May was still looking around the room is amazement. "This place is so pretty! I never would've been able to afford this by myself."

"You _have _to admit, it _was _sweet of him."

The other girl reddened brightly. "Y-yeah, it really, really was. I'll have to thank him somehow. After all, this is so generous of him!" May paused in thought. "Wait a second, if _I'm _supposed to go with Brendan, who are _you _planning on going with?"

A slight blush enveloped Dawn's face as well, but not nearly as deep a red as May's. "Why, Gary of course!"

"You sure like Gary a lot, don't you?"

Dawn giggled a bit. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Why?"

The other girl cocked her head. "Why do you want to know?" she asked, faking a defensive tone.

"Well, you talk about him a lot. I'm just curious as to _why_!"

"I-I'm not really sure . . ." Dawn considered. "It's a lot of things, really. I mean, he used to be really rude to Ash and others, but he changed. Now he's one of the sweetest guys I've ever met." Her face deepened slowly into a tomato-colored shade as she continued. "And he's really smart. Not to mention, well-" She giggled. "-he's really cute!"

May laughed at her friend's explanation. "Ah, that makes sense." After a few moments, she said, "I wonder who Drew is going to go with . . . _If _we go as couples, I mean."

"Yeah good question, so um, do you know much about this celebration, May?"

She raised her eyebrows at Dawn's sudden topic change, but decided not to press into the matter any further. "Not really. I think there's supposed to be some sort of challenge thing between teams of people, or so I've heard."

"Challenges? Like what?"

"I dunno. I think it's a large mix of all sorts of things."

"Teams of people . . ." Dawn considered. "How many people to a team? Do we get to choose?"

May giggled. "I don't know, Dawn! We'll just have to find out in two days."

"Guess so. Hey, I wonder if Candice knows we're here."

"Candice?" May questioned.

"Yeah, she's the gym leader here! She's pretty neat, but can get a bit-" Dawn searched for the right word. "-excited sometimes."

"Interesting. Well, if she's the gym leader, she must be really busy. After all, her city is getting overflowed by a whole lot of people, more than the usual amount of tourists, I'd guess."

"Yeah, that makes sense. I know Zoey and Kenny won't make it."

"Zoey? Kenny? Dawn, half the time, I have a feeling you're having a conversation with yourself," May teased.

"Zoey and Kenny are two of my friends, and they're coordinators too. They're both in Johto right now, trying to win some contests."

"I see. Max won't be able to come either."

"Your brother?"

"Yeah," May responded. "He's just started his trainer's journey, so he's a bit busy."

"I heard Brock can't come too. Something about getting a bunch of challengers at the gym."

"Bummer . . ."

"_And _he's finally gotten some girl to date him." Both girls broke into laughter.

"Well, good for him!" May said, smiling.

"I wonder if anyone else we know is coming," Dawn remarked, looking slightly spaced-out.

May didn't seem to notice her friend's statement. "Hey, you don't suppose we can get room service, do you?" She questioned, wide-eyed.

"Of course we can!" Dawn snickered.

"Well, that leaves us with one problem."

"And that would be . . . ?"

"What do we order first?"

* * *

_A/n _First of all-WOAH!-another update! Secondly, yeah, not that exciting. Oh well. I had to continue that train of thought _somewhere._ Besides, consider this the calm before the storm, cause things will be kicking into high gear pretty soon! Thirdly, you can expect three more characters next chapter! I'm sorry if it seems like a lot, but two are some of my absolute FAVORITE characters in the anime, and the other one is way sweet. It might be a lot to keep up with, but I've got a whole lot in store, so just hang on tight! ;)

**_Review Replies:_**

_Ability King KK: Yup, yeah he is. OH WELL!_

_AlizaBeth1985: Well, I don't think I could write Brock very well at all. XD I'd FAIL. I'd fail at the Rockets, too, so I'm afraid none of them will make an appearance. I'm sorry I'm so lame like that, everyone. ;_; Oh, I've got three more characters, and they are JUST what the doctor ordered for this fic!_

_Dewdrop6: Really? Cool! That's kinda what I'm going for, but sometimes I stink at being mysterious. X_x Oh well. I'm glad it's working so far! :)_

_Ash's Mexican Girl: Well . . . I didn't have ANY of it planned out. Seriously, that's how I write. I just wing it. I wasn't expecting this story to be as popular as it is, it just started from some random idea I got that I decided to put to paper-er, screen. So . . . I counted up a rough number of how many I might have . . . And I reached a resounding 100 chapters! ^^; It's an AWFUL lot to write (and to read, too). So really, anywhere between a bare minimum of 60 more and a maximum of 100 something more. Yeah, it's a WHOLE lot, and things will probably be most interesting at the very end, but I've still got a good deal of things planned out and I'm going to have to rely on all you readers and your opinions a lot! _

So, that's all I've got so far. Next update should introduce the last three characters to our group (notice the word _should_). Things will become really interesting coming up here, so get ready for it! Also, in the near future, I'm going to need a bunch of help with ideas (I'll give more info on that when it comes up), so you can start thinking now of certain elements you might like to read about in the story. ;) Thanks for reading everyone! And please, write a review too if you think anything is wrong, see any characters that are OOC, notice any errors, or think it's just plain bad (or good! That too.).

Y'all rock!

Finessefully,

X

P.S. I noticed a mistake in the last chapter. X( Spike cannon comes out sort of like a bullet seed, not like how I imagined it. :/ So . . . uh . . . Just pretend it was more like giant spikes being hurled, m'kay? That'd be nice of you all. XD AHem. Done now.


	12. Chapter 12

_A/n CAUTION! The author of the following story does not own pokemon. Please proceed at your own risk._

* * *

"So, what do you think we should- Oh, hi Brendan!" Dawn called as the boy approached them. The two girls were eating the continental breakfast that the hotel served in a large room north of the lobby.

"Hi," he welcomed, sitting down at their table.

May blushed a bit as he joined them. She had no idea what to say to the boy.

"Do you like your room?" he asked May kindly.

"Uh, well-" She shook her head rapidly. "I mean, yeah, yes, I do! It's beautiful. Thank you _so _much!"

He grinned. "Just glad I could help."

"Oh my- My skirt! You're gonna pay for this, you klutz!" The trio immediately turned to see what was going on. A boy about their age was holding an empty tray, staring at a woman in her twenties in shock. Apparently, the tray was clear because it had just been emptied on _her. _

"I-I'm so sorry, ma'm! Let me help-"

"No! You're just going to make it worse!" the lady screeched.

Brendan stood and approached the two. "Excuse me, but could I help, maybe? I can pay to have that sent to the dry-cleaner's, Miss. You don't have to yell at this guy, I'm positive he didn't mean any harm."

"Yeah, honestly, I just tripped. And it's all my fault, I should take the bill."

Brendan shook his head. "No, I insist. Let me help, please."

The boy removed his hat and ran his hand through his hair. "Well, if you insist . . . That's very nice of you, er-"

"Brendan," the other boy informed. "I'm Brendan."

"It's nice to meet you, Brendan! You sure came at just the right time." He replaced his hat and stuck out his hand for Brendan to shake. "My name is Ritchie. And that's Sparky over there, my pikachu." He gestured towards a small pokemon sitting on an empty table, happily munching an apple.

May and Dawn watched the entire thing, then stopped observing as the boys finished helping the lady clean herself off. "Woah! That Brendan sure is sweet, isn't he May?"

May blushed. "Y-yeah . . . Hey, you know what's funny? That guy Ritchie has a pikachu too!"

Dawn giggled. "Hey, you're right! It and seems to enjoying freedom from its pokeball as much as Pikachu does."

Just then, the two boys walked over. "May, Dawn, this is Ritchie. Ritchie, this is May, and this is Dawn," Brendan introduced.

May grinned. "It's nice to meet you! Would you like to sit with us?"

"Er, all right! I've just gotta get some more food first," he agreed, laughing.

* * *

Drew walked along the bustling streets of Snowpoint in thought. Yesterday had been . . . interesting, to say the least. He wasn't sure if he should chalk it up as a good day or a bad one. He'd made a few new friends, some of them not exactly _normal_, per-say, but that was all right. He just wondered about May. He still felt bad. Maybe he should've acted differently . . . no, that wouldn't have helped.

One person he didn't very much enjoy meeting was that Gary guy. One minute, he's begging Drew for help, the next, scolding him for something that was none of his business! Besides, he'd just met May! Why was he so protective of her? Besides, he had that really cute girl, Dawn, crushing on him. Was he oblivious or something?

Stung, Drew realized that he'd accidentally been oblivious to May. _'Okay, so maybe he just doesn't realize it . . . Never mind. Only someone like Ash could be oblivious to that much obsession!' _

He shook his head as if trying to scatter his thoughts. He was tired of thinking about things like that. He'd already spent a good deal of the night before pondering them.

Unfortunately for Drew, he wasn't looking where he was going, and ran right into a person whose company he did _not _enjoy.

"Careful, Drew," Gary's voice warned tensely.

"Oh, sorry. Didn't see you there."

"Mhm."

To both of the boys' preference, their communication would've ended there for the day. Apparently, however, those plans were to be annihilated by a small, blue mouse pokemon.

"C'mon, Marill, where are you? Do you have to do this in every town we go to . . . ?" They couldn't help it. They looked over at the mournful girl.

She was walking aimlessly when someone ran into her, knocking her to the ground. "Hey! Be careful!" She pulled herself up to a sitting position and sighed. "Aw . . . Marill! Where are you?"

Drew went to go help her, but to his annoyance, Gary was a step ahead. "Here. Are you all right?" He offered his hand out to the girl.

"Huh? W-well, I guess . . ." He pulled her up. "Thank you. I'm Lyra. And you are . . ?"

"I'm Gary," he greeted, smiling.

"And I'm Drew. I couldn't help but notice you were looking for a pokemon?" he asked in the most considerate voice he could muster. To Gary's annoyance, Lyra turned her full attention to Drew.

"Yeah! Marill . . . she always gets lost . . . But the thing is, I don't know this area very well- I mean, at all. Could you help me find her?"

"Yeah, sure!" came the unanimous reply.

Lyra grinned. "Thanks! I sure am lucky you guys saw me," she added, grinning.

And so, the three set off on a bold adventure into the great unknown- er, rather, went off to find Marill.

* * *

Paul was mad. He was mad at himself that he'd lost, mad at Misty for making that ridiculous bet in the first place, and mad that he'd bothered to come here early in the first place.

He was _mostly _mad that he had to spend two whole months in agony.

Of course, he was also mad because of the scene unfolding in front of him. He had been walking around in the outskirts of the city, enjoying the quiet, when a child had tripped and fallen quite nearby. When the concerned parents came over, they-for whatever reason-found Paul to be the cause of their child's sobs. Paul didn't understand why the two were so incompetent. The kid looked about eight or nine, and was sobbing too hard to explain what had happened. That, or he was an evil child who wanted Paul to suffer. He decided to go with the first thought.

Even though he was quite innocent in this, alas, he looked exactly like the sort of person who would trip some kid walking by.

"What kind of person does that to a kid?"

"Look what you did to our poor Timmy!"

'_Poor Timmy should grow a back-bone. I wouldn't have cried about __**tripping **__when I was that age.'_

Thankfully, he was tactful enough not to say that out loud, and even smarter to fake the kindest tone he could come up with. "I didn't trip your," he bit back the urge to add 'precious' sarcastically, "kid. He fell."

"What kind of person does that to a kid and then lies about it?"

"Maybe we should call the police for assault!"

Paul's eyes widened a bit. "What? Listen, I didn't touch the kid! He was running on _ice. _What else was gonna happen?"

"Hey, wait a second!" The three looked over. The kid was still crying. It was a girl, followed by an espeon. "I saw the whole thing! In fact, I was about to go help your son when you two came. But you see, this guy didn't do anything at all."

The parents exchanged glances. Their son had finally stopped crying. "Y-y-yeah M-mom . . . I-hic!- just tr-tripped."

'_Oh good. Truthful kid.'_

The parents muttered some apologies and helped their son away.

"Well, that was kinda weird," the girl remarked.

Paul murmured something under his breath and headed into the city.

"Um, glad I could help!" the girl called out. He completely ignored her. "Hey!"

He groaned. _'Here it comes! Three, two, one-'_

"I'm Sakura. What's your name?" she said as she approached him.

"Paul."

"Oh. It's nice to meet you."

Silence enveloped the two.

"Uh, I guess I'll see you later, maybe." With that, she walked away with a slightly befuddled look on her face.

'_Best person I've met yet.'_

_

* * *

A/n _Three new characters! ^_^ But, uh, I've run into a predicament. I'm only sure about, like, two pairings. XD So I'll be making the decisions while I'm writing. Won't THIS be fun? (It won't be Pokeshipping, Contestshipping, or Ikarishipping. Or you know, a lot of others.) ANYwho, hope you like the story! I know I do! ;)

**REVIEW REPLY TIME:**

_Ash's Mexican Girl: Well, it always makes me feel the same way when other authors do that for me, so I'm just happy to share the joy! :) Soooo glad you like mah storeh. _

_Macy Webber: ... YES HOW DID YOU KNOW? XD Glad you like it! ;)_

_Ability King KK: Thanks again for being a loyal reader (and reviewer) despite an (arguably depressing) lack of Abilityshipping. I know that you'll always review, and am glad._

_Livin'OnAPrayer: ^_^;;; Well . . . . I don't think so . . . I can try, but it won't end up that way, and that's a promise. Sorry, it's just that the majority of anime-shipping stories have at least a mention of Pokeshipping, so I'd like to be the exception. ONCE AGAIN PEOPLE, THIS IS NOT BECAUSE I HATE POKESHIPPING. This is because there is too much of it going around right now, and I want to give readers a chance to read something differed._

_Epicbluedragon: O_O Apology most certainly accepted! :D It's all right. Glad you think it's 'okay'. I'll settle. ;) Anyways, thank you very much for taking the high road and apologizing. The world needs more flamers like you. XD Okay, just kidding, but seriously, it wouldn't hurt if more people could apologize like that. So thank you very much, and you are most graciously forgiven. :)_

Well, people, I've decided I'm going to do review replies personally now, unless I get an anonymous review. Also, (I think) the chapter after the next one is when the Celebration starts! Won't THAT be fun? :)

Thanks to all of you for reading! I appreciate it immensely.

Please review! And if you don't, then . . . uh . . . Oh! I'LL FINE YOU ONE BILLION DOLLARS! *luvs Barry*

Finessefully,

X


	13. Chapter 13

_A/n: ;_; I stink at updating . . . *cries* I DON'T OWN POKEMON OR ELSE *begins listing random things* WOULD BE CANON._

* * *

Misty looked around, careful not to miss a detail of what she saw. There were people _everywhere, _and she could barely move without bumping into someone else.

"Misty! Over here!" she heard May's voice call. Glancing left and right, she finally saw May, standing beside Dawn, Casey, some guy she didn't know, and some guy she _definitely _did know.

"R-Ritchie? Is that you?"

He grinned. "Misty! Long time no see!" Soon, she was standing with the rest. "So where are Ash and Brock?"

"Ash should be around here somewhere," Misty giggled. "Brock isn't going to come. He's got some things going on at Pewter City."

"Oh, okay."

"Wait a second; Misty, you know Ritchie?" May asked.

She nodded. "Yup! Back when Ash, Brock, and I were traveling together, we met him. It was a long time ago, though." She paused. "And how do _you _know him?"

"Oh, May and I met him through Brendan I guess," Dawn answered. "Speaking of him, Misty, this is Brendan. Brendan, Misty."

The two exchanged greetings.

"Hey guys- Ritchie?" A familiar voice cut through the crowd.

The boy grinned broadly. "Ash! It's been ages!"

The two began conversing animatedly on how their lives had been going so far, and the rest of the group chatted casually. It would be quite easy to become claustrophobic due to the size of the crowd, but it made the frosty air was much more bearable. As time passed, nearly the whole group was gathered together, introduced, and reacquainted.

Misty had been thrilled to see Sakura again, and the girl was swiftly befriended by May and Dawn. Casey was listening interestedly to Ritchie and Ash's conversation, and Brendan attempted a few discussion starters with Paul, Drew, and Gary, to no avail. Eventually, the boy had to be content getting the occasional word in with the other boys' chatter. Drew and Gary, in the meantime, were darkly avoiding each other's gazes. Their stiff movements and irritated glares made it quite clear that they didn't like each other in the least.

And so, the gang was just missing _one._

"Hi Gary, hi Drew!" They both turned to see (who else?) Lyra.

"Lyra? What are you doing here?"

The brunette's eyes widened. "Dane? You're here too?" Drew cast a confused glance to Gary.

"Who's Dane?" he whispered.

"No clue," came the bewildered reply.

Dawn blushed. "Actually, Lyra, it's Dawn . . ."

"And Ash!" Lyra immediately gravitated towards the boy.

"Huh? Oh, uh, hi Lyra . . ." Normally, he would have been quite cheerful to see her, however, he wasn't exactly pleased with having his personal space invaded so brashly.

"It's been _forever!_"

"And how's Khoury been?" he asked.

Suddenly, Lyra's countenance darkened. "I'd prefer not to talk about him, Ash," she muttered.

The mood of the group had quickly changed.

"O-kay then, well how-"

"Wait just a second here. Lyra?" interrupted Casey.

The brunette looked over. "O-oh, Casey! I remember you. You started your journey a year before me, right?"

Casey smiled smugly. "Why yes, I-"

"But my Pokemon are a lot stronger and smarter than yours."

The other girl blinked. "W-what did you just say?"

Ash and Ritchie, detecting the downright _scary _aura the two girls were giving off, both took one large step back. The rest of the group watched in silence.

"Well, I got my badges a lot faster than you got yours, or so I heard."

"That doesn't mean a thing!" Casey snapped. "After all, my training has been like the Electabuzz's baseball season-it starts off a little slow, but fires up when it counts!"

Lyra laughed. "The _Electabuzz? _I can't believe you're into such a lame team. I mean, anyone with a _brain _knows even the Violet City Bellsprouts are tougher than them."

Casey turned beet red. "You take that back you-"

"May I have everyone's attention, please?" a clear loud voice sounded across the multitude, and thankfully breaking off what would have been a nasty tirade. The group looked up to a large stage situated about two-hundred feet away. An elderly man was speaking into a microphone. "Today marks the start of Snowpoint's decennial Winter Celebration!" The sea of people cheered. "As some of you may recall, for each celebration, we have a series of challenges, designed especially for groups of friends, with a wonderful reward at the end! Each day, starting tomorrow, ending on February fifteenth, and excepting Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, shall have one challenge. The group that completes the most challenges by the end will be deemed the winner!" The man paused, cleared his throat, then continued.

"A group shall be made up of six people, no more, no less. Of course, there will still be plenty of activities for those who choose not to take part in the Celebration Challenge. The prize is kept secret till the end, but we can promise you, it is _quite _something. There will be people in the crowds dressed as ice-type pokemon. They will be handing out the registration forms. All you need to do is fill it out, hand it back to one of the aides, and then come back each day for your challenge! Each challenge shall be explained in full on the day of. If you have have any questions, please go to one of the specially marked booths. Now, Mrs. Hayburry has a few words to say about Snowpoint's traditions!"

As soon as the lady took the microphone, Ash began talking. "This challenge sounds awesome. I am so in. How 'bout you all?"

"Oh, _I'll _go with you Ash!" chimed Lyra.

"Haha, no. Ash, I'll be with you," argued Casey.

Misty rolled her eyes. "I have a better idea, everyone. How about boys versus girls?" There was a distinctly mixed response. "No, really, it'll be fun! Besides, we can make it our own personal challenge. How about besides just competing against all the others, we compete against each other too?"

"Not a chance," muttered Paul.

Misty smirked. "Afraid you'll lose . . . _again_?"

An angry scowl enveloped the boy. "That's it. I'm in."

"All right! Another person on my team!" Ash cheered. Paul nearly took it back, but he was cut off.

"I'll join too, Ashy-boy," Gary added.

Drew cocked an eyebrow haughtily. "Well I'd better help you all out; you'll need all the help you can get if _he's _on your team."

Gary's temper flared, but he said nothing.

"At least us girls can get along, right?" Dawn insisted. Then she caught a glance of Casey and Lyra, shook her head, and sighed.

Misty tracked down an aide for the Celebration, and soon, both groups were official.

Ash smiled. "This'll be awesome. There is no way us guys won't win."

Dawn giggled. "As if. We girls are the ones who are going to get that award." The gals agreed collectively; even Casey and Lyra.

"May the best group win!" Misty intervened. All present accepted that, and left for their hotels. Tomorrow would be quite a busy day.

* * *

_A/n: Well, I know it took just about TWENTY-FIVE YEARS for me to update (I exaggerate, I know), but it is finally here! The next chapter . . . :D And I take back what I said last chapter or so. I do know which pairings I'm gonna use, all except two, but those'll become clear eventually I'm sure._

_What do you think of the whole challenge thing? Sounds fun, right? Well . . . IT IS! Why? Because *you*, that's right, you, my loyal readers, get to come up with challenge ideas. ^_^ Must be basically winter related; think of group oriented tasks like scavenger hunts or something. If you think of anything at all, please, tell me! I'll use it if I can. I could probably come up with something with even the most obscure idea, so try me! After all, there are a WHOLE lotta challenges, and I'm not sure I could come up with 'em by myself . . . ^^;; So please, please, PLEASE, shoot me some ideas. Please. And thank you! ^_^_

_Keep in mind that I am in the process of moving, so if the next update takes a long time (like this one did), I have a good excuse. ^^;; Ash's Mexican Girl, I'm sorry the review reply didn't come out right. Stupid iTouch. *it stops working* GAH! I DIDN'T MEAN IT! _

_Dewdrop 6: LOL, Drew and Gary. Those two are *AWESOME* to write. :3_

_LASTLY, a free advertisement, *AHem*, I mean recommendation. :D_

_Swan Song by Woodwings. It's a Pokemorph OC fic thing, but it's really good. REALLY good. :3_

_DONE NOW! ;D_

_Finessefully,_

_Your apologetic, sorry, way-too-slow writer,_

_X_


	14. Chapter 14

A/n: Hi all! I don't own pokemon. ^_^

* * *

Dawn stretched lazily, casting a sleepy glance to the clock next to her bed. 8:45. Her eyes widened. _"And remember, let's meet back here at nine o'clock sharp!" _Those had been Misty's (who was pretty much the leader of their team) exact orders.

"No! No no no no no!" she shouted, throwing off the covers and dashing to the bathroom.

By the time she was ready, it was 8:59. _'Aw, drat. And that's the fastest I've ever gotten ready, too . . .' _Not wanting to be any later than she knew she would, she gathered her things and made her way quickly to the designated meeting area without getting any breakfast.

"Ah, Dawn, there you are!" Misty greeted when the navy-haired girl came into view. "We've been waiting!"

Dawn bit her lip. "Sorry, everyone. I, uh, overslept." She let her gaze sweep over the group. Most in the group must've been thinking the same thing as Dawn was, that being 'Why does the meeting area have to be outside?'.

Misty didn't seem to mind the cold air that blew quite cruelly on the girls, nor did she appear to have any problems with waking up at seven in the morning.

May looked half-asleep, and Dawn noticed that she'd accidentally put on two non-matching boots. One was bright red, and the other was a greenish-gray.

Casey must've been made for waking up early, as she was by far the perkiest of the group.

As for Lyra, she was just the opposite. Her eyes held an uncharacteristic, dangerous glare, as if daring someone to wish her a 'Good morning!'.

Shy Sakura seemed slightly drowsy, but still ready for anything the day would throw at her.

"What do you think the challenge will be? Do you think it'll be hard?" Dawn questioned no one in particular. She resisted the urge to ask if there would be food involved.

Casey laughed. "Hard? Dawn, it's called a 'challenge' for a reason. It'd better be hard! Just like the Electabuzz, we can rise to the occasion and beat out whoever stands in our way, be it the guys or some other team!"

The other girls (or at least the ones awake enough to care) didn't really know what to do about that pep-talk, but shrugged and welcomed it anyways.

Dawn couldn't take the hunger any longer. "Hey, anyone up for some breakfast?"

* * *

Ritchie walked into the dining-section of the lobby with an excitement he hadn't had for a while. The next couple of months were going to be insanely fun; he could barely wait before the first challenge came!

Scouting out the room, he finally found the table he was looking for. Seated around it were a cheerful Brendan, a fiery Ash, a thoughtful Gary, a tired-looking Drew, and a downright _scary _Paul. With a sheepish smile, he figured he knew now who were morning people and who were _not._

As he got closer, Ritchie saw the feast that was laid out on the table. There were all sorts of fruits, both regular and exotic, and pancakes, bacon, eggs, sausage, waffles, toast, muffins, and yogurt, all of different flavors, and all looked quite well-made. These certainly weren't your normal buy-'em-at-the-grocery-store breakfast foods. Out of all the tables around, theirs had the best selection.

"W-what- how- where'd all this food come from?" he asked eagerly upon joining the group.

Brendan grinned. "Oh that's right! You weren't there when I told everyone. You see, my dad owns this hotel chain, so I can kind of get whatever I want." He seemed slightly embarrassed about it, and he certainly wasn't flaunting it.

"Really? Well, we're lucky to have you in our group, then!" Ritchie wasted no more time in enjoying the wonderful food.

Ash looked like he wanted to say something, but his mouth was too full of food to get anything comprehensive out. "So, does anyone know what the challenge is today?" Gary asked.

Drew rolled his eyes. "How would we know? They announce it _right before it happens."_

"C'mon guys," Brendan interrupted. "We need to work as a team so we can beat all the others."

"I don't think the girls are going to be very difficult to beat," Paul mumbled, speaking for the first time that day.

"He speaks!" Ash announced playfully after swallowing his food. The other boy had a look of burning fury, but was intercepted by the peace-maker.

"Ash, I don't think you should tease Paul. And Paul, we should take every team seriously, just in case. What if it's something like outfit-designing or something?" The visible shudder from all the males indicated that they would very much _dislike _doing that.

Crossing his arms and sending Drew a glare, Gary made another inquiry. "What time does it start?"

"At ten-thirty," came Ritchie's reply.

"And what time is it now?"

"It's nine forty-five."

"Well, we've still got time," mused Ash, taking a muffin and stuffing it into his mouth.

* * *

"Welcome to the first challenge, everyone!" boomed the announcer's voice over the crowd. The people cheered, and the girls cast an uneasy glance across the area. Still no sign of the guys.

"First of all, I'd like to announce that we have twenty teams competing this year, meaning one-hundred and twenty people are in this competition!" The crowd cheered again.

"Hm. Doesn't seem like a lot of people compared to how many people come to the celebration," Lyra mused. She seemed a little less hostile after having eaten.

Misty thought for a moment. "People would probably rather enjoy the celebration slowly, not striving to beat out other teams for some prize that they might not even like."

"Mhm, that's nice. Where are the guys? He's gonna announce the contest soon!" Casey asked.

They all continued looking. "Oh, hey! There they are!" announced Sakura. Sure enough, the boys were running over to the area.

"You guys are late," chimed May lightly as they approached. "We thought maybe you were so scared that you decided not to take us on at all."

"Team All-Star doesn't get scared," returned Ash. Everyone stared.

"What did you just call us?" Paul questioned incredulously.

Ash grinned. "Team All-Star! We need a cool team name; what's cooler than All-Star?"

"Flower-Power, that's what!" May snapped back.

Casey's mouth fell open. "W-what? No! I refuse to be called a member of Team Flower-Power! We should be Team Electabuzz!"

"Why would we name ourselves after _losers_?" Lyra deadpanned.

A dark glint shone in the other girl's eye. "If you wanted a slap in the face, you could've just asked."

"I was afraid you wouldn't understand if I used such big words."

"Girls, girls!" Dawn interceded, pushing the two apart. "We're part of the same team!"

"Well, I'm _not _part of 'Flower-Power'," Casey growled.

"Good!" the other Johto-native fired back. "Now I _know _we'll win!"

"Lyra, shush!" the blunette scolded. "Casey, let's just forget about team names for a second and pay attention to the _rules of the challenge!_"

"And that's all there is to it. Now, everyone, you have five minutes to prepare yourselves, then the challenge begins! Good luck to all of our contestants."

There was a stunned silence from the twelve. "W-wait a second, here," Gary began nervously. "What's the challenge? What are the rules?"

"Yeah, it was kind of hard to hear over those three," Paul added, eyes narrowing into a glare.

"I was paying attention," Misty said, smiling. "It's an ice-type catching contest."

"Oh! That sounds like the bug-catching contests in Goldenrod!" Lyra interrupted.

Misty shuddered. "Uh, yeah. Well, the rules are simple. Different kinds of ice pokemon have been released over there-" Misty gestured to a large, fenced area, thick with snow and trees. "-and each trainer has to catch one. We weren't told how the judges would determine the points given per pokemon, so we'll just have to go with our gut instinct. You'll be given a certain amount of special kinds of pokeballs before entering the area, and you may only catch one pokemon at a time. So in other words, if you catch pokemon A, and you want pokemon B, you'll have to release pokemon A."

"Sounds easy enough," Ash decided.

"There's one more thing, though. You can only use one pokemon to battle and catch the others. The rest have to stay with challenge officials."

"Still easy. Let's go!" With that, he took off, the other members of his team trailing behind him.

"C'mon, they're gonna get there first!" Casey shouted.

"No, wait. We can take our time," Sakura said cheerily. "After all, the gates won't open for another two minutes."

Soon, all the teams were lined up at the large gates. "All teams, please prepare to begin," a voice called over a speaker. There was a pause. "And now . . . open the gates!"

The gates swung out, and the trainers dashed out into the deep snow, pokeballs clutched tightly in their grip.

* * *

_A/n: 0_0" Long chapter is long. Well, that only took an eternity to write. ^^;; I'm sorry again everybody!_

_Actually, it IS Ritchie. Check Bulbapedia. _

_Oh look! More shameless begging for ideas!_

_So, uh, any more ideas for challenges? I have a LOT of them to do, and I can't think of them alone. X/ So, what do you say? They really don't even have to be winter-themed. They'll probably work either way. So, uh, reviews, please oh please oh please, and ideas! _

_Thank you all!_

_Finessefully,_

_X_


	15. Chapter 15

_a/n I don't own Pokemon. _

* * *

"All right Meganium," huffed Casey, pushing through the deep snow with her partner. "Let's make this a big win, just like the Electabuzz in last year's fourth game!" Even when freezing cold and shivering, the girl was still full of energy and pep.

Meganium cried out in response, ready for anything. Under a canopy of frosty trees, the wind was much less bitter than it had been in the open town square. "I wonder how the others are doing... Hey Meganium, could you believe that that _Lyra _girl chose to use her Meganium too? What a copy-cat," she muttered. Even back home in New Bark Town, Casey recalled, they'd had a nasty rivalry. Despite Casey being older, Lyra had a fire that burned just as passionately as her own.

A sudden call from Meganium snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked ahead. "H-huh? What's that?"

"Snorunt!" the little pokemon called as it darted about, watching the grass-type and its trainer.

"I've never seen anything like that before... it's pretty cute though." With that, Casey made up her mind. "Okay then, let's catch this one, Meganium! Use magical leaf!" The multicolored fronds slashed at the tiny, triangular ice-type, angering it into a blizzard attack. "D-drat!" Casey muttered in annoyance. "I j-just had to get it m-mad-d. W-well, we'd better wr-wrap this up fast! L-leaf tornado!" Pine needles were swept up with the attack as bits and pieces of the terrain went flying at Snorunt.

It proved to be too much for the young pokemon, and as it fainted, Casey cheered. "Haha, home-run for the home team! Now let's finish this up!" She tossed a pokeball over and it tapped the snorunt, effectively catching it. "That was easy," she noted, picking up the ball. A harsh gust of wind blew by. "Oh yeah, I can go inside now! C'mon Meganium, we're done!"

* * *

"Pi-pikachu," murmured the electric type, bundling himself tightly in Ash's scarf.

Ash laughed. "I know it's cold, buddy, but all we have to do is catch a pokemon. We're good at that, aren't we?" He scanned the area for any pokemon, but found none. Walking a little farther, he found many trainers everywhere, looking for wild pokemon to catch. "Well, we won't find any if everyone's catching them here," the boy mumbled. "Let's try further out." It was roughly twenty minutes before Ash began to be annoyed.

"This is taking forever," he moaned, exasperated. He was cold, tired, and hungry. There wasn't a soul around, human or pokemon. "We'd better not be lost..." He rested his head in his palm, recalling another such instance involving being very cold and very disoriented. The trainer was wandering around near a frosty lake which, by some sort of miracle, he supposed, had not yet frozen over. Grabbing a stone, he thrust it in. "This is pointless," he grumbled. "I better just stay put. A pokemon will wander over eventually."

For the next few minutes, he continued tossing stones and other random things he found on the ground into the water. "Pika..." The pokemon poked its head out from under the scarf.

"Huh? What is it?" A large, dark shape was charging towards them beneath the surface of the water. "Wh-what is that?" His eyes got wide, and a haunting call filled the air loudly. The pokemon leapt out of the water and landed on the shore menacingly. It was the largest, meanest-looking lapras he'd ever seen.

A small pang of fear hit him, but that was instantaneously replaced by a rash and wild sense of adventure. "All right! This brings back memories... And it's the kind of battle I've been waiting for! You ready, Pikachu?" he asked, grinning.

"Pika-_chu!_"

Ash cheered. "Okay! Let's do this! Use shock wave!" The unavoidable move struck hard and fast, weakening the lapras considerably. It struck back with a fierce ice-beam attack, one that hit Pikachu dead-on. "C'mon, shake it off, buddy. Thunderbolt!" The lapras had now retreated to the lake and used mist quickly. The hazy area made it near-impossible to land thunderbolt. "Looks like we're back to square one. Shock wave, again!" The electricity pulsed into the murky depths and stopped. There was silence. "D-did we do it?"

The mist began to clear, and Ash readied a pokeball. "This is it, Pika-what?" The lake was empty. The boy and his pokemon came up close to the shore, staring into the water warily. "Where'd it go?" he asked in bewilderment.

Pikachu leapt off Ash's shoulder and walked a little ways away. "Pi-pika?"

"I don't kno-Look out!" Ash cried. It was too late, though. The lapras barreled into Pikachu, using the attack 'bulldoze'. It was super effective, and it plunged the electric type into the water. Floundering to the top of the water, Pikachu struggled to stay afloat. A swift body slam sent him plummeting to the bottom of the lake. "N-no! Pikachu!" Without a second thought, Ash jumped into the water, swimming after his friend. The lapras slammed into him nearly knocking him out, but his adrenaline was pumping too hard to stop now. He grabbed a revive from his pocket. _'Good thing I brought this just in case...' _he thought to himself. Ash swam hard and managed to brush the revive against Pikachu's ear before he was hit again by the furious lapras. That was all it took, though.

Pikachu awoke immediately, and seeing the danger his trainer was in, used an under-water quick attack to steal the lapras's attention away. As the lapras sprang towards Pikachu, Ash was free to surface. Gulping in the frosty air, he rushed to the shore. Once he was safely out of the water, he was given a chance to end the battle. "Now we can finish this, Pikachu! Thunder!" The electric type was in the water, as was the lapras. There was no way this would miss. Volts of electricity electrocuted the entire lake. Ash could feel the heat radiating off. Pikachu bounded over and landed with ease on his trainer's shoulder, and Ash threw a pokeball at the fried lapras. It was captured without any problem.

"We did it," he laughed. "Now just one more thing... how do we get the pokeball back?" Said pokeball was floating contentedly... in the middle of the lake.

* * *

_A.n: What? No romance this chapter? Well, it IS a pokemon story after all, so there's so pokemon stuff for all y'all. ;p _

_This is SO LATE I am so sorry D: But see the thing is... I'm a junior in high school now... and I'm taking my first college class. And I'm addicted to Pokemon Black. So mix all that together and you get me, not writing my stories. I HAVE been writing essays though. Lots and lots of essays. 'Yay'. _

_Okay so here's the thing. I still need plenteh of suggestions for challenges, m'kay? As you have seen this chapter, they can end up quite interesting for some of the trainers. XD _

_**R**eview **R**eplies:_

_Ability King KK: Well yeah... :/ But in this story he also owns a Hotel Chain. Maybe he inherited it? XD_

_DS: Hahaha! I have pretty much figured it out I think! Just shaky on two of the couples... but believe me, all will sort out by the end. ^_~_

_Macy Webber: Aw, thanks! :D _

_Pokegirlash: I am SO sorry D: here's your new chapter... late but finally here. XD _

_Dewdrop6: Here it is! (Late). I will try not to EVER do this to you guys again... ;_;_

_ANYways, I'll try to write the new chapter sooner than this one came, 'kay? ^_^" Thank you for reading, and for waiting so TERRIBLY long. DX _

_Finessefully,_

_X_


	16. Chapter 16

_A/n: I don't own Pokemon._

* * *

"I can't believe I got roped into this stupid thing," Paul grumbled to himself, walking in the snow alongside his weavile. He scanned his surroundings. "What pokemon are out here, anyways?" Sure enough, the area the boy had wandered into seemed deserted. Weavile's eyes narrowed and he called to his trainer.

"Wea-wea!" His claws pointed to an inconspicuous tree.

Paul studied it for about two seconds. "Is there something in there?"

"Wea-vile!" The pokemon shook his head. _'This would be a lot easier,' _Weavile thought to himself, _'if he could understand me. Looks like I'll have to show him what I mean.' _

"Wea-_vile!" _At that, he struck the tree with a slash attack, causing it to stand up and run around in circles.

"Wh-what?" For a moment, Paul was dumbstruck, but his composure returned near-instantly when he realized that before him was not a possessed tree, but rather a snover.

"Sno-ver!" It stopped running and stood before Paul, mouth upturned in a friendly smile. "Sno-sno-ver sno snover!" It continued on in that manner for some time, until the boy had had enough.

"C'mon Weavile, no point in catching this one." Paul and Weavile turned and walked away, and Snover was left staring at his momentary companions' backs as they left.

"Sno-ver?" He sighed. _"This is how it always is. No pokemon wants to be my friend. No human is ever out here. Oh, I'm so lonely!" _He began to cry. _"No, wait... this may be my only chance! I should- I should follow them!" _Wiping the frosty tears from his eyes, he ran off after his 'friends'.

"That snover was really annoying," Paul remarked as he and Weavile walked along.

"_You're lucky you couldn't understand him," _Weavile replied, knowing full well that his trainer couldn't understand _him _either.

"Sno! Sno-_verr!" _A cheerful voice bellowed from behind them. Both trainer and pokemon's expressions matched; eyes closed in annoyance, faces cloaked in a grimace.

"_Hey guys, wait up! Let's be pals- whoops!" _At that, the tree pokemon has tripped and face-planted in the snow.

"Weavile." Paul's voice was colder than the temperature was. "You know what to do."

His partner nodded quickly and turned, claws ready. He sighed in exasperation when he realized his opponent had still not gotten up. _"Hey you! Get up!" _

Snover rose shakily. _"Huh? You want me to come with you? Oh yay!" _He ran towards Paul and Weavile, eyes closed, arms out, prepared to hug them.

Weavile rolled his eyes. _"You're stupid." _Beginning with a blindingly fast quick attack, following it with a slash, and finishing with a shadow claw, Snover had never had a chance.

"Finally, that thing won't bother us anymore. C'mon Weavile, let's go find something worth catching." As he said that, he turned to walk away, standing uphill from where the 'battle' had taken place. Weavile followed quickly, but neither noticed a pokeball fall from Paul's bag and roll down the hill, bumping gently into Snover. They heard the capsule open and, in horror, realized it was _Paul _who had 'caught' the pokemon. He went back and picked up the pokeball. "Ugh, what a waste of a pokeball. Too bad. Let's release this thing quick."

Before he could do so, though, a challenge official walked over. "I see you've caught your challenge pokemon! Great work!" She took the pokeball from him. "Snover, huh? Nicely done." She recorded the catch on her clipboard. "All right, you can go back to the Trainer House out front and wait, since you're done now."

"But that's not my-" However, the words were spoken in vain. The hasty official had already run off to another trainer. Paul sighed. "Just my luck."

* * *

"Ready Sparky? This is gonna be fun!" Ritchie was all smiles. He had missed competing in general, since aside from tournaments, he hadn't gotten many battles that were actually challenging. "This is gonna require a bit more than battle knowledge... no problem, though."

He looked around carefully, making sure he didn't miss a single detail of his surroundings. To do this right, he'd have to pay attention.

"There it is, catch it!"

"No way, my pokemon's weak against water, you catch it!"

"It's too strong for me to take on."

The loud voices quickly threw off Ritchie's plan to stay focused. "Wonder what's going on." He followed the sound of the chattering group, and found several trainers surrounding a large pond.

"There it is again! Weepinbell, vine whip!" Ritchie watched as an ice beam from a pokemon hidden beneath the water shot out and hit the weepinbell. "Aw man... frozen again."

"What is that?" Ritchie asked as he approached.

The boy with the weepinbell looked over. "Hm? Oh, it's a dewgong. It has to be worth a lot of points, so we're all tryin' t' catch it."

"The problem is, though," a girl standing nearby added, "it's too strong for any of us to catch."

Ritchie smiled. "Can I try?"

The surrounding trainers nodded.

"Sure, be our guest!"

"Just don't complain when it freezes that little mouse of yours!"

Ritchie glanced at Sparky. "You ready, buddy?"

"Pika! _Chu!" _

He laughed. "All right, let's do this! First, let's lure it out... Iron tail on the surface of the water!"

The trainers around him seemed confused. "That's not gonna do nothin'!"

"Yeah! What gives?"

"Just watch," Ritchie replied. The vibrations shot out around the water; a sign the dewgong took to mean as prey nearby. It leapt out of the water and looked for its meal, only to find a bunch of humans surrounding it. Before it could make its hasty retreat, Ritchie commanded, "Sparky, thunder wave!" Held fast in place, Dewgong could do nothing but attack. It launched bubblebeams, ice beams, and aurora beams in every direction, panic taking hold of the wild pokemon. However, Sparky was agile and easily dodged the unaimed attacks. "Okay, finish it with thunderbolt!"

The pikachu did as it was told, and soon, the dewgong lay on the snow, fried. Tossing the pokeball gently, Ritchie smiled. The dewgong was his. He picked up the pokeball and grinned. "That's how you catch a pokemon." With a parting wink to the amazed trainers, the boy and his pikachu headed to the Trainer House.

* * *

_A/n: Fillerish chapter, I know. But it's needed, kinda. This challenge is taking a lot longer to write than I expected. o_O The other ones should be shorter. Just so you know. ANYways, this fillerish chapter is all I've got cuz I've got a very large paper to write and it's due in two days. And I haven't started it yet. _

_ANYhow, let's go to the reviews. ^_^_

**R**eview **R**eplies -

DS - Thanks :') This one is late too, though. -SHAME-

Macy Webber - That would be cold 0_0 XD

Misty-Chan - Aww, that sounds cute X) Ehehehe, Novelshipping -is- cute. In a weird way, but whatever. XD

DewDrop6 - And Ritchie proves here that he's smarter than Ash... XD (not that he needed to prove it but yeah XD)

Flame(r)2000 - I didn't come up with the name Brendan, or the character. Pokemon did. So you can complain to them, cuz -recites disclaimer again- I don't own pokemon! ;D Thanks for the ideas, though! ^_~

_Au revoir, til next time, my friends!_

_Finessefully,_

_X_

_P.S. Please review. It does a heart good when you review. :')_


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